


The Beauty and The Mercenary

by Tania885



Category: Batman (Movies - Nolan), Batman - All Media Types, Gotham (TV), Suicide Squad (2016)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Angst with a Happy Ending, Assassins & Hitmen, Bruce Wayne Needs a Hug, Childhood Sweethearts, F/M, Fluff and Smut, Getting to Know Each Other, Implied/Referenced Abuse, Making Love, Making Up, Misunderstandings, Nanda Parbat, Past Relationship(s), Reader-Insert, Running Away, Strangers to Lovers, Temporarily Unrequited Love, Vaginal Sex
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-22
Updated: 2021-01-08
Packaged: 2021-03-10 16:53:47
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 21
Words: 49,487
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28230453
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tania885/pseuds/Tania885
Summary: You hate your father for many reasons. Before he was arrested for money laundering you stole a large sum of money from him to put your younger half brother through college. After your father's release from prison he blackmailed you making you work for him.To rebuild his empire he hired a group of mercenaries to take out his competition. That's when you met the masked man Bane and his right hand man Barsad. You tried avoiding your father's business associates but luck was not on your side.When it came time for your father to pay  the men he didn't have the agreed upon amount. He noticed Bane's infatuation with you and offered you up as payment.As Bane takes you away you have a whole new reason to hate your father. It's a long bumpy road full of misunderstandings but you eventually come to find out looks can be deceiving. Bane isn't the cruel monster you once thought him to be, and actually fall for the man behind the mask.
Relationships: Bane (DCU)/Reader, Bruce Wayne/Reader
Comments: 40
Kudos: 99





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This story won't be following the Dark Knight storyline. I did that with a different fic, Crazy Love. 
> 
> Also on another note, the reader is taken against her will but there will not be any non con in this story.

CHAPTER 1

The sun shines down on you as a light breeze blows through the trees. Leaning against the large tree in your backyard you tune out the world around you as you read your book.

That is until a shadow looms over you and the scent of cheap perfume hits you. Maybe if you stay completely still she'll just go away. You hear an annoyed sigh. "You are so incredibly boring you know that? Your father wants you in his office."

You release the breath you were holding. Luck certainly is not on your side today. "Okay I'll be inside shortly." 

She blows a bubble with her bubblegum and scoffs at you. "He says now. If you know what's good for you you'll get your ass inside now."

"Okay! Fine!"

She rolls her eyes at you, flips her bottle blonde hair over her shoulder and stomps away in her high heels. 

Mandy is technically your stepmother. You call her your father's child bride. She's younger than you by a couple years. It's just disgusting and awkward. Plus you really hate that high maintenance cunt.

You were intentionally avoiding your father and the inside of the house. He had some sort of ‘business meeting’. You try to steer clear of his shady business associates.

Reluctantly you close your book and head inside. When you get to the hallway his office is located in there's a couple men outside the door dressed like soldiers in camo. Well that can't be a good sign. They look you up and down as you approach. It's a little warm out so you have shorts and a tank top on. As they blatantly check you out you wish you had more layers on.

You knock as you cautiously open the door to your father’s office. He gives you a fake smile from his seat behind his desk. “There you are, it’s about time.” As you step into the room you see he’s not alone there’s two men standing to the side of his desk. They are both dressed in military like gear. The shorter one is handsome with a short scruffy beard, brown hair, and sad eyes. The taller one is very, very large and muscular. His head is shaved, but you can’t see his face because he’s wearing some kind of mask. What has your father gotten himself into now, is what you are internally asking yourself. 

Both men watch you as you cross the room. But they keep their eyes on your face not your body. At least they are more respectful than the men outside. You stop in front of your father’s desk and clear your throat. “You rang?” You say sarcastically. 

He narrows his eyes at you slightly. “Yes your expertise is needed.” He nods his head towards the two men in the room. “They need you to access some files for something they are assisting me with.”

“Uh huh. Who’s system am I breaking into?”

Your dad turns his laptop around on the desk so it's facing you. Then the shorter man hands you a piece of paper with a company name and address as he speaks. “We need access to their security and surveillance system. Can you do this?”

You look at the piece of paper and suppress the urge to roll your eyes. It’s the name of a company that rivals your fathers. He cheats his way to the top. He lost his last business after he went to prison for embezzlement and money laundering for a while. Now he’s trying to rebuild his empire by taking short cuts obviously. You honestly aren’t even sure what your father’s business is, just that it has to do with import and export.

You know you can’t say no to the man’s request. That’s the arrangement you have with your father. Before he went to prison you stole a large sum of money from him. You used it to pay for your younger half brother’s college tuition. Since you stole already stolen money, and you were very aware of your father’s illegal activities you could have been arrested as well. When your father was released from prison he basically blackmailed you. He gets to use your computer skills whenever he wants, you stay out of jail and your brother stays in college. Yes your father is quite the asshole. It’s really no wonder why your mother divorced him, god rest her soul. She passed away when you were a teenager, forcing you to live with your father. 

You look to the shorter man that was addressing you. “Yes I can do it.” Then you start typing away on your father’s laptop. The man comes and stands behind you looking over your shoulder. Your douche of a father makes no introductions. So you pry a little. “So who are you guys?”

“That’s not important.” The man behind you says curtly. 

You can feel your father’s eyes boring holes through you with what you're sure is a look of disapproval on his face. But you refuse to look up and acknowledge him. “Fine, but if you're going to be looming over my shoulder can I at least have a name to call you?” 

He’s silent for a moment. You can’t see his face since he’s standing behind you. But you hear a small sigh escape him. “Barsad. You may call me Barsad.”

“Okay Barsad. I’m (Y/N).” Then you glance to your right where the masked man is. “What about you? What’s your name?” He makes no movements, doesn’t even blink. He just stares at you. His stare makes chills run down your spine. But you don’t want to show how intimidated you actually are by him. When he doesn’t answer you, you address Barsad again. 

“What’s the matter? Mr. Tall, dark and mysterious over there can’t speak?”

“(Y/N) shut up and do your job.” Your father grits out. 

Then you hear a strange breathing sound. Like a respirator almost. You quickly realize it’s coming from the masked man staring at you. “My name is Bane. And Mr. Daggett you need not speak to your daughter in such a way.” His voice is deep and you can’t deny it’s a very sexy voice. And he shut your father up. You almost want to high five the scary man for that. You wonder what the deal is with the mask. But you decide not to push your limits.

You carry on with your task. It doesn’t take you long. When you access the information they requested you clap your hands together. “Okay gentlemen I’m in.” Your father chuckles. “See I told you guys she was good.” That’s probably the most praise you’ll get from that man.

You ignore your father and turn to the two men. “Need me to do anything else or do you want to take over?”

Barsad nods his head at you. “I can take it from here. Thank you for your assistance (Y/N).” Then you get up from your seat so he can take your place. Your father doesn’t say anything else to you as you leave, and starts talking to Bane. But as you are walking away Bane’s eyes follow you. You quickly exit the room and get out of the hallway as fast as possible because the men outside the door are leering at you again. 

Two days go by. You don’t hear anything about the mysterious men and your father offers no information. Which you are actually thankful for. The less you know the better. 

You slink through the house quietly to avoid both your father and his child bride as you make your way to the kitchen. You put some headphones on as you make yourself some lunch. Since no one is around you just can’t help yourself and start dancing and horribly singing along to the music. Once you’ve finished making your sandwich you grab several things to place them back in the fridge. 

When you turn around you smash your face into what feels like a brick wall and it scares the shit out of you so everything in your hands goes flying in different directions. “Aaahh! What the fuck?!” You slowly tilt your head back when you realize the brick wall is a body. When you make eye contact with the man the body belongs to you smile sheepishly and pull your headphones out slowly. “Um…..” You’re at a loss for words as you look at the masked man. 

“My apologies (Y/N) I did not mean to frighten you.” He rasps out through his mask. You’re a little surprised he actually has manners. And the look in his eyes to you he almost looks amused. It’s hard to make out since you can’t see the rest of his face.

“Um….It’s alright. But are you in here for a reason?” You speak slowly and cautiously as you feel like your heart is going to beat right out of your chest. 

“Yes. We are in need of your assistance once again.”

“Okay. Can you give me like five minutes?”

He just nods his head and walks away without another word. Once he’s gone you put your hand on your chest and take a few deep breaths. Well that was really terrifying and unexpected. After you clean your mess and try to devour your meal in record timing you go down the hall to your father’s office.

Once again the creepy pervy men are standing outside the door checking you out. You roll your eyes at them as you knock on the door and go inside. The men in the room are almost in the exact same position as the last time you were in there. Your father is standing up behind his desk with Barsad and Bane standing off to the side. 

When your dad sees you he rolls his eyes and scoffs. “You couldn’t make yourself presentable (Y/N)? You have mayonnaise on your fucking face.”

Your eyes go wide and your hands immediately go to your face. Oh god that's embarrassing. That’s what you get for scarfing down your food apparently. Barsad has a small smile tugging at the corner of his lips. Bane though is giving your father a scary look, and he must feel it too. Because he slowly turns his head towards Bane and gulps. 

You decide to interrupt their silent conversation. “I was told you needed my help?” Barsad once again hands you another piece of paper. “We need you to access this man’s financial records.” You take the paper and sit down in front of the laptop that was waiting. Without a word you start doing as he asks. 

After a couple minutes you sigh heavily. “This one is going to take me a little longer. This guy has more security than the last one.”

“How long?” Bane asks you in a calm voice.

You frown and scratch your head as you think. “Um...maybe a half hour.” He nods his head. “We can wait.” Those three words make you tense up. You’re just going to have three sets of eyes staring at you for the next thirty minutes. Geez no pressure. You take a deep breath as you crack your neck and then your knuckles. Then you go to work and try tuning out the men in the room. But the hissing sound of Bane’s mask keeps catching your attention. 

After about fifteen minutes Mandy comes strutting in wearing a skimpy red dress. That gave the creeps in the hallway something to stare at. She walks up to your father with her hand out. “I need my shopping allowance baby.”

You bite your lip trying your hardest to contain your smile and suppress your laughter. His wife has an allowance. That just goes right along with your child bride statements. As your father digs through his desk she pushes her chest out and looks at Barsad and Bane hoping for attention. They both pretend she isn’t even there. They either look at you or outside. 

Your father’s voice pulls you from your thoughts. “Can’t you come in here for something other than money just once?” He says sarcastically. 

Then you without thinking blurt out. “You didn’t really think she was with you for your charming personality and good looks did you?” Once you realize you said the words out loud your eyes squeeze shut and you flinch. You know he’s going to slap you for that one. But it never comes. So you squint your eyes open and see Bane with his hand around your father’s wrist. “You should not lay your hand on a woman.” You can hear the warning behind his words. This guy is just full of surprises. 

Mandy scoffs. “She has it coming with that smart mouth of hers.” Then she grabs the money out of your father’s hand and struts out of the room.

There’s a long tense and awkward silence in the room now. So you work faster and harder to finish your task so you can get the hell out of there. Once you finally hack into the system they need you sigh in relief. “Okay fellas all done. Do you still need me or am I free to go?”

Barsad gives you a slight nod. “You may go. Thank you again for the assistance.”

You didn’t need to be told twice. You scurried out of there like the house was on fire. 

A week goes by before you see the two men again. Your father still slapped you upside the head the next time you got cornered in the same room as him. He did it twice for you embarrassing him twice.

Bane watches out the office window. He sees you basking in the sun reading a book. He can’t take his eyes off you. He’s so lost in thought as he gazes at you that he doesn’t hear John Daggett telling him he doesn’t have enough money to pay for the services that he and his men provided. 

When he hears Barsad speak he’s pulled back into the present. “We had an agreed upon price Mr. Daggett. Half when you hired us and half when the job was finished.”

John is practically squirming in his seat as Bane locks his eyes onto his. “I’ll have the money. It’s just going to take me some time. Now that my business will be on the top of the food chain I’ll be bringing in more money. Just give me a little more time.”

Barsad crosses his arms over his chest. “Do we look like a bank to you? You don’t get a payment plan.”

John’s business partner, Philip, showed up with a briefcase full of money to pay the men. But it’s only half of the agreed upon amount. Bane looks at Philip. “Leave us.” But John stiffens as he stands up. “No. Stay. I’m in charge here.”

Bane takes a couple steps closer to John and puts his hand on his shoulder. “Do you feel in charge?” As John's eyes go wide with fear your movement outside catches Bane’s attention for only a brief second, but it doesn’t go unnoticed by your father. 

His voice is shaky as he speaks. “You…..you like the girl? You want her? Take the girl as payment.”

Bane narrows his eyes at the small man in front of him. “You would want to sell your first born child. Your daughter. What kind of father would do such a thing?”

“You would be doing me a favor. She hates it here, and she owes me a debt herself anyway. This will clear her debt.”

“What kind of debt could she possibly owe you?”

John gulps as he tries stuttering out the words. “She….she stole from me. She stole a lot of money. She’s only staying here to repay what she owes me.”

Bane removes his hand from John’s shoulder making him flinch. Then he looks to Barsad and they have a silent conversation. They both glance outside at you once more as a heavy silence falls upon the room. Bane’s breathing echoes through his mask. “We’ll take the girl.”


	2. Chapter 2

CHAPTER 2

If you didn’t care so much about your younger brother you would have left this place a long time ago. You haven’t seen your brother since he left for college a couple years ago. But he calls and texts you on a regular basis. You didn’t want him to have the same fate as you. So you keep him far far away from the father you both share.

Speaking of said father you are really tired of being called into his goddamn office. You thought his business was done with Bane and Barsad. You haven’t seen them in a week. But here you are being summoned once again. Mandy gave you a smug smile when she told you your father wanted to see you right away. So that can’t be a good sign. 

You roll your eyes at the men gawking at you outside his office door. Is that all they are paid to do? Just stand outside of doors attempting to look important. 

You don’t even knock this time you just shove the door open. As you enter the room you can feel the tension in the air. Philip, your father’s business partner is in the room and Mandy is still present for some reason. All eyes are on you and you’re not sure how to interpret the looks you're getting.

Bane cocks his head to the side as you get closer. Then he takes a couple strides toward you. When he’s standing right in front of you he slowly lifts his large hand and grips your chin with his thumb and forefinger. It makes your skin break out in goosebumps. For how large and obviously strong he is his touch is surprisingly gentle. He then gently turns your head so he can see the side of your face. There’s still some red marks on your cheek, near your eye where your father struck you. You feel like you're in a trance as he examines your face. You see his eyes narrow as he sees the bruising. Then he releases you and steps away without a word breaking the trance you were in.

You decide not to say anything about what just happened. Partially because you're not sure what to say. Instead you cross your arms over your chest and look at your father. “Okay I’m here. What is it?”

He clears his throat awkwardly and loosens the tie around his neck. “You’re leaving with them.” That puts a frown on your face. Since when do you do field work? “Okay…..where and what am I doing?”

A bag falls at your feet. Mandy dropped it on the floor next to you with another smug smile. “You’re going on a permanent vacation. Don’t let the door hit you in the ass on your way out.” You look up at your father with wide eyes. Before you can even get any words out he starts talking. “Your debt with me is cleared and now my debt with them is cleared.”

Once you process what he’s saying you feel like your blood is boiling. “You fucking sold me to them?! You don’t own me. I’m not a fucking object to be bought and sold. So you can go to fucking hell you piece of shit! I’m leaving but not with any of you.”

Bane gives Barsad a slight nod. “Take her to the SUV.” Instantly filled with fear and dread you turn to run but the smaller man quickly catches up with you. He may not be as big as Bane but he’s still quite strong, and stronger than you. He puts a hand firmly on your upper arm but not enough to hurt you as he pulls you along with him. You squirm trying to pull your arm away. “No! Let me go! You can’t do this!” 

Barsad isn’t even phased by your shouting or attempts to get away. When he gets you to the office door you take one more look over your shoulder and yell at your father. “You’re going to hell for this! I fucking hate you!” 

Once you're outside Barsad opens the door to a large black SUV. You’re still trying to pull yourself away and make a run for it, but your attempts are fruitless. You have no fighting skills whatsoever. You actually tend to avoid confrontation. You are completely powerless in this situation.

“Get in the back.” He says in a calm voice which just pisses you off more. “You’re not taking me anywhere. Fuck you!” He just sighs at you in annoyance. He lifts you up like you weigh nothing and shoves you into the car. The SUV has third row seating so he pushes you to the far back seat. The two men that were standing outside the office door sit in the middle seats. Barsad shuts the door and climbs into the driver seat. 

Your vision starts to blur as the tears well up in your eyes. You pull your knees up to your chest and curl into yourself. How could your father do this to you? And what are these men going to do with you or even worse to you? You couldn’t stop them if you tried, especially Bane. 

Then as if your thoughts summoned him the masked man himself climbs into the passenger seat of the SUV. You’re now shaking in fear and a never ending flow of tears stream down your face. As they start driving you watch the house you once reluctantly called home get smaller and smaller. He’s going to pay for this. You’re not sure how, but you’ll find a way to make him pay. 

Once the SUV reaches the highway you lay down in the backseat and cry. You’ve never cried so much in your life. You try not to think of horrible things they might do to you once they have you alone. But the more you try the more terrifying the thoughts get which upsets you more. 

You’re not sure how long you lay back there or how long you’ve been in the SUV. But when it comes to a stop your heart starts pounding and a wave of panic washes over you. The two men in the seat in front of you turn and reach for you. You scream and start kicking at them. You scream so loudly it hurts your throat. You manage to kick one in the face. “Don’t touch me! Stay away from me!” 

“Hands off her now.” Bane’s deep voice calls out from outside the SUV. Both men immediately exit the vehicle. Your chest is heaving as you try to catch your breath. But when you see Bane lean inside you feel panicked all over again. “Don’t you fucking touch me.” You grit out. 

He surprises you by kneeling down on one leg outside the SUV to make himself smaller, and puts his hands up like he’s surrendering. “I mean you no harm (Y/N). We need to have a conversation.”

You angrily wipe the tears off your face. “What are you and your buddies going to do to me?”

“Nothing. I know I look like a monster and may behave as one at times. But never in that way. I would never force myself upon a woman, nor will my men.” 

You have a brief moment where you feel bad for him because he referred to himself as a monster. But it’s a very brief moment. If he’s not a monster why the hell would he agree to take you as payment. “Then what do you want me for? Why would you accept my father’s offer?”

He keeps his hands up where you can see them and his eyes on yours as he speaks. “With your skills you will be a valuable asset to have around. And your father is being surveilled by multiple government agencies. It would have been a matter of time before they took you themselves. So in a way I am also protecting you.”

You scoff at him. “Protecting me from the government? Seriously? My father is the guilty one not me. I just hack into things for him from time to time because he fucking blackmailed me.”

“The government is the most corrupt part of modern civilization. But you don’t understand, your father was messing with some dangerous people. If the FBI or CIA were to take you it wouldn’t end well for you. They would take you to a black site where no one would know where you are. Would you trust your government not to harm you? With your skills they’ll want you to work for them. So they would break you until you tell them everything that you know and comply with what they want.”

You just stare at him in disbelief. He’s probably just trying to scare you. Sure you’ve seen some things while hacking into other people's personal files. But do you really know enough to the point the FBI would want you, let alone the CIA? That just sounds absurd. On the other hand if your house was being watched that means they saw Bane and his men coming and going over the last few weeks. You can make an educated guess that Bane’s on someone’s most wanted criminal list. Surely they would want to question you about him, even though you don’t really know anything about the man.

Bane can see the internal argument you are having with yourself. “(Y/N) all I am asking of you is to work me. In return I will ensure your safety.”

“Asking or telling?”

You see a similar look in his eyes like the day you smashed into him in the kitchen. He has a look of what you’re pretty sure is amusement. “Honestly I thought I would try asking first. If you refused my offer then, well I’d be telling you instead.”

“Sounds like I don’t have much say in the matter.” You say scornfully.

Bane pulls himself off the ground and back to his feet with a low groan. “Let’s go home then, shall we?”

For the first time you take in your surroundings and look out of the window. You’re at an airport. Where in the fuck is home?


	3. Chapter 3

CHAPTER 3

You begrudgingly got onto the private aircraft and found a seat in the back corner to hide yourself in. You considered making a run for it, maybe someone would see you calling for help. But it was a private airfield and didn’t see anyone else around. Only more men that worked for Bane. You weren’t sure how far you would actually make it before one of Bane’s men caught up to you. On top of not knowing how to fight you are also not the slightest bit athletic. You prefer sitting down and reading a good book. That trait has not served you well today. You decide to plan your escape once you get to wherever they're taking you. 

Everyone on the plane leaves you alone. You’re assuming Bane ordered them to. Bane did make you feel slightly better knowing they aren't going to try and have their way with you. You’re not sure what to make of him. Some parts of his personality that you’ve seen so far are contradicting. He’s a big brute of a man commanding his own private army yet he can be gentle and soft spoken. It’s so confusing. 

The flight takes several hours. Being mentally and emotionally exhausted you eventually fall asleep. When you had asked Bane before you climbed out of the SUV where ‘home’ was you’re pretty sure he was smiling under that mask. And he never answered you. 

You startle awake when a hand on your shoulder shakes you. The strange surroundings frightens and confuses you. Then you remember how you ended up where you are. You angrily swat the hand off your shoulder and glare at the man looming above you.

Barsad puts his hands up. "I'm sorry. I tried calling your name but you wouldn't wake up."

"What do you want? You hiss at him. 

"We're home." Is all he says in response and then walks away. You look out the window. All you see for miles is mountains and snow. Where in the ever loving fuck did they take you?

You slowly stand up and look around. The men are buckling harnesses on and tying ropes. Barsad comes back and tries handing you a harness but you give him a confused look and refuse to take it.

"We can't land the plane this close to the mountain. This is how we get home." Then he tries handing it to you again. 

You take it this time and then quickly throw it across the plane. "You're fucking crazy if you think I'm jumping out of a plane. No fucking way, not gonna happen."

He lets out an exasperated sigh. Then he turns and looks at Bane for assistance. They look like they are having a silent conversation. You wonder how long they've known each other to be able to do that.

They nod their heads at each other. Barsad walks away from you without another word. One of the men opens the door of the plane. The cold air hits you making you shiver. Then you realize you're in the mountains wearing summer clothes.

The men start jumping out one by one. When most of the men are out Bane approaches you with a coat in his hand. You want to refuse it but you're so cold you take it. It's a man's jacket but it's too small to be Bane's.

"Thank you. But I'm still not jumping out of the plane." He nods his head once then picks you up, throwing you over his shoulder. You start kicking and hitting him from the awkward angle. "Put me the fuck down! This is bullshit. Let me fucking go!"

The wind starts blowing harder as you get closer to the door. He sets you down but holds you flush against his large body with one arm. "I suggest that you hold on tight." Then he jumps off the plane. 

You scream or attempt to. Your throat is still sore from the last time you screamed. But you immediately wrapped your arms around his neck. It feels like you're falling forever. Eventually you feel when he hits the ground, but he keeps his hold on you. Your feet are hovering just above the snow.

"Now you may continue to be stubborn and walk through the snow yourself or you can cooperate and I will carry you. You decide little one." 

Damn him. You are wearing some thin sneakers. You really don't want to cooperate but you also don't want to freeze. You kind of need your feet. You let out an annoyed groan. "I'll cooperate." The two words come out like it physically pained you to say them out loud.

"Excellent choice." He says with a hint of humor in his voice. Then he scoops you up in his arms bridal style. You keep your arms wrapped around his neck and take a good look around. "Where are we?"

"Nanda Parbat and those are the Himalayan Mountains."

Your eyes go wide. Oh holy hell. You're in fucking Asia, far far away from home. How the fuck are you going to escape now?

Off in the distance you can see what you can only describe as a mansion built into the side of the mountain. It looks very old. It's like multiple buildings or houses built and layered on top of each other.

The cold wind starts whipping against your skin. You curl into Bane looking for warmth and hide your face against his shoulder and neck. His breathing stutters when your nose accidentally brushes against the bare skin of his neck, but you're too cold to think anything of it.

Once he finally reaches the building he gently sets you down inside. Barsad appears with the bag that was packed for you. You're afraid to see what was actually packed.

Bane takes your bag from Barsad and points down a hallway. "Follow me. I'll take you to your room." 

You do as he asks. There's no reason to fight him on the subject. You're still exhausted and just want to sleep. You follow him down a series of hallways until you see a set of very tall and wide double doors.

He opens the doors and walks inside. It's a large room. One wall is entirely windows that overlooks the mountains. There's a king size bed and a fireplace across from it. It's a very nice room, you're actually surprised. You half expected to be held prisoner in a jail cell. 

Bane goes to the fireplace and starts a fire. You glance around the room some more. There's an open wardrobe that's full of men's clothing. There's also tactical gear lying all over. 

"Bane….whose stuff is this?"

He stands up with a grunt and takes his jacket off. "Mine." Is his only response. 

You huff in annoyance and cross your arms over your chest. "I thought you were taking me to my room."

He stands in front of you mimicking your position with his arms crossed. "I promised to ensure your safety did I not?"

"Ya…..and?"

"I work with and for many dangerous people. You will refer to yourself as my wife and will stay in here. No one will dare lay a hand on you."

You stare at him hoping he's trying to play a joke on you. When he moves away from you and resumes removing some of his layers you realize he's completely serious.

"What the fuck is wrong with you?! I'm not your fucking wife and I'm not sharing a bed with you! I don’t even know anything about you."

You hear him take a deep breath. "You should rest. If you are choosing to be stubborn again feel free to sleep on the floor. You'll have plenty of time to argue with me more tomorrow, and then l will answer any questions you may have."

Then he climbs into the bed after turning the lights off. The room is still illuminated by the fireplace. You stand with your feet planted in the same spot just glaring at the masked man lying comfortably on the bed. You are curious about the whole mask thing but you're far too tired and irritated to worry about that right now. 

He lets out a sigh that echoes through his mask. "I will tell you this one last time. I promise I have no intentions of putting my hands on you, you are safe with me. You can be stubborn on the cold hard floor or cooperate and sleep comfortably in bed. Your choice."

Even though he's essentially a stranger to you and a very intimidating man you do believe what he's saying. He could have very easily forced himself on you at any time. He only put his hands on you once to get you out of the plane.

You stomp your foot on the floor like a petulant child and mutter under your breath how the whole situation is bullshit. You hate no actually loathe your fucking father right now. This morning you were relaxing outside in the sun with a good book and now you’re in the mountains in Asia with a strange group of men.

A defeated sounding sigh escapes you as you slowly cross the room and climb on the opposite side of the bed. You kick your shoes off and lay on the edge of the bed so you’re as far away from him as possible. Despite your unease about your current situation you fall asleep quickly.


	4. Chapter 4

CHAPTER 4

A cold chill wakes you in the early hours of the morning. You’re shivering so you burrow further into the blankets. The bed moves which confuses you until you hear the breathing sounds of Bane’s mask. Then the events of the previous day come back to you. You slowly crack your eyes open and the first thing you see is a shirtless Bane in front of the fireplace. He’s restarting the fire that went out. But you forget about the cold when you take a good look at his large muscular frame. His back is covered in scars. After you look over the scars you realize you are actually more like admiring his physique and then internally slap yourself for it. You have so many questions floating around in your mind right now and should not be checking that man out. 

Once Bane has the fire going he turns and sees you looking at him. “Good morning little one.” Apparently he has a nickname for you already. You don’t say anything as you slowly sit up and rub the sleep from your eyes. You not so subtly look at the rest of his bare frame that’s now facing you. You’ll scold yourself for that later. He sits on the edge of the bed. The corners of his eyes are crinkled so you’re pretty sure he’s smiling under the mask. “I can hear the wheels turning in your mind. Go on ask your questions.” 

You blurt out the first question that pops into your head. “What exactly do you and your men do?”

“This place is home to the League of Shadows. Some call us assassins, some call us mercenaries. We go where we are needed or when we are hired. Like your father for example hired us to eliminate his competition.”

You should be surprised and terrified. You are scared at the thought of being surrounded by assassins, but not surprised. “So you kill people….”

“Yes, when it is necessary.”

You narrow your eyes at him. “You said you wanted me to work for you. I’m not going to help you kill people.”

His eyes are squinted again. So he must be smiling at you. “You won’t be. I need your technical skills to gather information when the occasion calls for it. I must say I am rather surprised you have not once asked me about the mask since we met. Are you not curious?”

You bite your lip and run your fingers through your hair. His eyes drop to your lips then back to your eyes for a brief second. You chose to ignore that. “Yes I’m curious. But it’s not necessarily important that I know. Since you brought it up though why do you wear it and do you ever take it off?”

“It is to control the constant pain my body feels. I have something I can take that lasts for short periods of time allowing me to remove the mask.”

You cock your head to the side and take another look at his body, the parts you can see at least. “What happened to you? I saw the scars.”

He takes a couple deep breaths and breaks eye contact with you. For a moment you worry that you shouldn’t have said anything. But after a couple beats of silence he starts talking. “When I was much younger, not even really a man yet I was put into a prison. The Pit, or as many call it the pit of despair. It is an underground prison but there’s a large opening allowing you to see the sunlight. Gives you false hope of the chance of escaping. One day there was a riot and I was caught in the middle and was badly injured. The doctor that did his work on me only made things worse. Then a plague broke out in the prison causing an infection on top of the injuries I already had. A man pulled me from the Pit and the mask was made for me, it's the only thing that keeps the pain at bay. The man that rescued me from the pit was my mentor. The league of shadows was led by him. I took over after his death.”

You just stare at him. You’re not sure what to say to all that, and it’s far more information than you expected from him. “Why are you so openly telling me all this?”

He frowns at you. Like it’s an absurd question. “I want you to trust me.” Then he stands up taking a step closer to you. He hovers his large hand near your face. A single fingertip with a feather light touch brushes across the bruise on your face. Your skin breaks out in goosebumps but it's not from the cool air. “And I want you to understand this will never happen to you again.” He senses your unease on that subject when you turn your head away from him so he steers the conversation elsewhere. “Barsad will be here shortly to show you around, and he gathered some more appropriate women’s clothing for you.”

That last part gets your attention. “There are other women here?”

He shakes his head. “No, they belonged to a friend that no longer lives here.”

“A friend? Like a girlfriend? Are you giving me your ex-girlfriend’s stuff?”

He frowns at you again as a sigh escapes him. “No I am not. She was a friend and only a friend. She moved on from this place.” Then he throws on a shirt and leaves the room. You have a feeling there was far more to that story. He left awfully quick when that subject came up.

You think over everything he's told you so far. You kind of feel bad for him. Then you shake your head at yourself. "He's Stockholm Syndroming me already. Fuck my life man." 

A short time later after you’ve finished scolding yourself and rolled out of bed you clean yourself up. Then Barsad comes looking for you like Bane said. He hands you a box full of women’s clothing. You lift an eyebrow at him. “So who did this stuff belong to?”

He gives you an unreadable expression. “What did Bane tell you?”

“Just that she was a friend that no longer lives here.”

He shrugs his shoulders at you. “Well it seems like he already answered your question. Now let's go. I’ll show you around and I’m sure you’re hungry.”

You internally roll your eyes. Whatever, it doesn't really matter anyway. You're escaping the first chance you get. You most certainly are not going to pretend to be anyone's wife while being forced to work for assassins.

Barsad walks you through the main parts of the building. At one point you see a room full of men dressed like fucking ninjas beating the shit out of each other, and some are even sword fighting. Seriously what the fuck?

After that he takes you to a dining area and gets you some breakfast. He goes to leave to let you eat in peace but you see the two men that were constantly eye fucking you at your father's. You quickly grab Barsad's arm. He gives you a questioning look.

"Please don't leave me in here alone with them."

He glances at the men you are referring to and sits down next to you. "Why do they frighten you?" He asks with sincerity in his eyes.

You tell him about their behavior every time you encountered them at your father's house. He nods his head in understanding. "I promise you it won't happen again."

"Thank you Barsad." 

There's just something about Barsad, you like him so far. You don't find him threatening and he actually seems very kind despite his chosen profession. 

After you finish breakfast he walks you around a little more. He shows you around outside and tells you about the village further down the mountain. Once he's done showing you around he walks you back to Bane's room.

"Am I being confined to this room?"

He cracks a tiny smile. "Of course not. You may go anywhere I showed you. I have some things I need to do. I assumed you wouldn't be comfortable wandering around alone yet."

Okay he's not wrong. Hanging out with trained killers does not sound appealing to you. You nod your head in agreement and enter Bane's room as Barsad leaves. The room is empty. You didn't see Bane at all when you were with Barsad so you wonder where he is.

You decide to go through the bag that was packed for you. You let out a humorless laugh as you dig through it. It's all summer clothes. Nothing that will do you any good here. They didn't even give you a book or anything else personal of yours. "Fucking assholes." You mutter to yourself.

After a few hours of complete boredom and your mind spiraling out of control as you take in the last twenty four hours it's lunchtime already. You're still alone and you're actually starving. You argue with yourself for a while then decide fuck it and try finding the kitchen on your own.

You slowly walk the thankfully empty hallways as you try to remember the way Barsad took you. A voice gets your attention. It's Bane's voice echoing through the halls. As you turn another corner you reach a stairwell. At the floor below is Bane with the two men you told Barsad about. 

"Your weakness and insolence will not be tolerated." Bane says in a cold tone of voice. Then he puts a hand around each of their throats snapping their necks with little effort. Their lifeless bodies fall to the floor with a loud thud. He then addresses someone you can’t see. He points to the bodies. “Hang them for the others to see.”

You throw a hand over your mouth to quiet yourself as you slowly back away. A wave of fear and panic washes over you. He just killed two men like it was nothing. And was it because of you? Once you feel like you're out of earshot you start running. You run back to Bane's room and throw on several layers of warm clothing. 

When you're sure you will be warm enough you sneak through the halls quickly until you find an exit. When you get outside you make a run for it. You run as fast as you can through the snow and down the hill. In your state of panic you trip yourself and fall. It's a steep hill so you end up rolling. Eventually you slow down enough to stop yourself. You find a tree to lean against to catch your breath. You take a chance glancing up the hill. You don't see anyone following you. That's a good sign.

Once you catch your breath you continue your journey down the hills to the village below. In hindsight this was a terrible idea. You have no idea what you're going to do when you reach the village. This is a desolate area, what if no one can speak English? You're too scared to turn back. You're not exactly sure how long it takes you to reach the village. But it had to at least be an hour and you cut some time when you tumbled down part of the way.

When you exit the trees and reach the clearing to the village you can see people. As you get closer your heart drops and you instantly feel defeated. Barsad is leaning against a little hut watching you. "Fuck!"


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a shorter chapter. The next one will be much longer.

CHAPTER 5

You are incredibly cold and tired. No, tired doesn't describe it. You are exhausted and in agony. After Barsad totally busted you he told you to start making your way back up the mountain. That smug bastard has a snowmobile. He said he couldn't give you a ride back up because he had orders from Bane. Apparently Bane said you climbed down on your own you can climb back up on your own.

Every muscle in your body aches and burns. Your feet hurt, you're pretty sure they are covered in blisters. You're still starving since you haven't eaten since breakfast. With every step you feel like you're going to collapse at any moment. This is obviously Bane's way of punishing you. Even though you are angry with Barsad he did actually look like he felt terrible about making you walk back up. 

It's been a few hours, the sun is getting low in the sky making the already cold air even colder. Finally you see the large building you've been forced to return to. When you reach the top Barsad is there waiting for you. He gives you an apologetic look with his already sad eyes. "Are you alright?"

You don't say anything as you angrily brush past him. He sees you about to collapse before you make it to the door. He catches you and scoops you up in his arms. "He only said I couldn't help you up the mountain. He didn't say anything about when you made it to the top."

As much as you would love to shove him away and tell him to fuck off you're just too tired. So you let him carry you and lay your head against his shoulder. "I really am sorry (Y/N). But why did you suddenly decide to run?"

"I saw him kill them." You whisper back to him.

He doesn’t say anything else after that. He just keeps a firm hold on you as he carries you through the hallways. You’re too exhausted to think about where he’s taking you until you hear the voice of the man you were originally running away from. “Give her to me.”

Your eyes fly open and you see Bane reaching for you. You flail around in Barsad’s arms as you protest. “No! Fuck you! Leave me alone!” Your squirming causes Barsad to lose his grip and you drop to the floor landing on your feet. Then you cry out in pain, it hurts to stand on your feet and drop to your knees. Which still hurts from your aching muscles but not as severely as your feet. 

“I’ve got her. You may go.” Bane says to Barsad. As you’re kneeling on the floor crying you can see Barsad doesn’t leave right away. He hesitates but eventually does as he’s told. Bane kneels down on the floor next to you. “There is a hot bath ready for you. Will you allow me to carry you to the door?”

“Like you fucking care. It’s your fault I’m fucking hurting everywhere.”

He cocks his head to the side as he frowns at you. “This is a consequence of your own choices. I did not force you to run down the mountain. That was your own foolish decision. Now put your stubbornness aside and let me help you up.”

“No!” You growl out and force yourself to stand up. “I don’t need you or your fucking help. Fuck you very much.” You bite your lip to keep yourself from crying out as you hobble to the bathroom on your own. It’s excruciatingly painful, but you don’t want to give him the satisfaction of allowing him to help you. Once you get to the bathroom you slam the door shut as hard as you can. Which actually isn’t very hard since you have zero energy or muscle strength left.

You can’t deny though the hot bath did feel wonderful. But you won’t admit that out loud. You were right about your feet being badly blistered. That’s going to hurt for a few days. The hot water helps relax your aching muscles. You stay in the bath until the water gets cold and you almost fall asleep. You very slowly climb out of the tub and you realize you don’t have anything to change into. Not in the bathroom at least. There’s a bathrobe hanging behind the door. It’s far too small to be Bane’s so it must have been put there for you. Which makes you glare at it for a moment because you unfortunately need it.

When you finally decide to leave the bathroom you slowly crack the door open. You don’t see Bane so you pull the door open more and poke your head out. The room is empty and there’s a tray of food sitting on the bed. If you weren’t starving you’d throw the tray of food out in the hallway just as another fuck you to Bane. But that’s just not an option for you right now. Once you painfully make it through getting dressed and eat you pass out the moment your head hits the pillow.


	6. Chapter 6

CHAPTER 6

A week goes by after your failed escape attempt. Bane has been giving you space and leaving you alone. You haven't left his room, granted you did sleep for almost two straight days. 

Bane comes back to his room late in the evening and is gone again before you wake up. You find breakfast sitting on a table waiting for you each morning. Neither of you have said anything to each other since you yelled at him. 

Yesterday morning you found a book sitting next to your breakfast tray. Which actually made you smile, he obviously knows you like to read. But then you remember why you ran off in the first place and lose your smile.

You are on speaking terms with Barsad. He brings you lunch and dinner. You know anything you say he will repeat it to Bane. But you need someone to have some sort of human interaction with. 

He did point out that you and Bane will have to speak at some point. Which you are still being stubborn about. And rightfully so if anyone were to ask you.

You obviously aren't going to be making anymore escape attempts from here which was what Bane was trying to accomplish when he made you walk back up the mountain. You'll just have to hope he takes you with him the next time he leaves. So maybe if you suck it up and start talking to him again it will help ensure that.

After arguing with yourself then giving yourself a pep talk you finally decide to talk to Bane. The problem is he’s only around when you're sleeping. You don’t know where he goes during the day. When Barsad brings you your dinner you decide to ask him. 

He sits down and eats with you like he has been the last few days. You’re actually thankful for the little bit of company. “What’s on your mind (Y/N)? I can tell you want to say something.”

You set your fork down and frown to yourself. “I…..I’ll fucking talk to him.” You say just barely above a whisper. You can tell Barsad is trying to keep a straight face. You scowl at him. “Smile and I’ll change my mind.” You say half jokingly. He finds your stubbornness amusing. 

He shakes his head still holding back a smile. “I would do no such thing. I will say I am pleased with your decision though.”

You roll your eyes at him. “Well where is Bane? I don’t know where he goes during the day.”

Barsad opens his mouth to speak but it’s not his voice you hear. “Speak of the devil and he shall appear.” Bane’s voice startles you. How is someone his size so quiet? You look up and see him standing by the door. You’re pretty sure that was his version of telling a joke. He seemed rather amused saying it.

Barsad grabs his plate and gets up from the table. He gives you a small smile and nods his head at you for encouragement. Then he promptly leaves the room. When the door closes Bane slowly strides across the room and sits across from you at the small table. He puts his elbows on the table and laces his fingers together. The two of you just have a staring contest for a moment. Both of you have equally stubborn personalities it seems. 

You roll your eyes at him and let out a defeated sigh. You run a hand down your face and take a deep breath to steel your nerves. “Why did you kill them? I’m assuming Barsad told you I saw what happened.”

He slowly exhales as he leans forward looking you in the eyes. “There are rules everyone here must follow. They all know the consequence of not following the rules. They were punished and used as a warning for breaking the rules.”

You look at him incredulously. “What rules? Because of what I told Barsad? They didn’t deserve to die for making me uncomfortable by inappropriately checking me out. The punishment doesn’t fit the crime.”

“They could not be trusted. They cannot be members of the league if they cannot be trusted. Each man knows the rules before they are initiated. Their choices led them to their consequence.”

Your eyes start to water as you remember the horrific scene you witnessed. “You killed them like it was nothing. Like it was no big deal, just a routine part of your day.”

“I already told you what it is that I do. I have never lied to you about who I am. I kill men when it is necessary. You are frightened of me more now, I can see it in your eyes. I would never harm you, you know that don’t you?”

You shrug your shoulders. For some reason deep down you do know that. And he’s not wrong, he never lied about what he does. He even shared far more about himself than you would have expected. You bite your lip and look him in the eyes as you nod your head at him. You wipe the tears that are still welling in your eyes. “I’ve never seen a dead body before. Let alone someone being killed right in front of me. I got scared and panicked, that’s why I ran.”

“I know.” He says in a low and quiet voice. His eyes look sad as he speaks. “Do you understand why I made you walk back on your own?”

You scoff at him. “So that I wouldn’t do it again. That doesn’t make me any less mad at you for it though. But I’m willing to come to an understanding with you about it and move on from it. Is that fair?”

He nods his head at you. “Fair enough.”

You go back to eating your dinner. Bane starts to get up to leave. “You can stay, if you want. I mean unless you have somewhere else you need to be.”

He moves back to his previous position with his elbows on the table and his fingers laced together. You bite the inside of your cheek. He looks awkward like he doesn’t know what to do or say. The big tough mercenary looks nervous. So you decide to help him out. “Thank you for the book you left me yesterday.”

His eyes perk up a little at that. “You’re welcome. I can get you more if you would like.”

You nod your head and give him a small smile. “Yes I would like that.”

The next morning you wake up feeling extremely warm for once. Normally you’re cold in the morning until Bane restarts the fire. As you slowly wake up more you realize your face isn’t pressed against a pillow and you feel fingers gently running through your hair. You squint your eyes open and see that you have your face smashed up against Bane’s bare chest. The instant he realizes you’re awake he stops moving. “You rolled over to me, you were like this when I woke up.” He says almost nervously. He’s afraid you’ll think he crossed a line since he said he wouldn’t lay a hand on you. 

You again find it humorous that this big scary man sounds so worried about you thinking he did something wrong. You slowly roll away putting some space between the two of you. “It’s fine. I believe you.” You hear him exhale like he was holding his breath as he waited for your response. 

After a few beats of silence he sits up with a groan. He does that a lot. It makes you wonder if he’s still in pain even with the mask. He turns his head to the side glancing over his shoulder. “I need you to pack a bag. We’ve been hired for a job.” He waits to see if you’re going to argue or protest. When you just nod your head in agreement he gets out of bed to get ready for the day. 

You are internally excited, and hoping you are going to an actual city back in the U.S. You will have a far better chance of getting away. As you’re packing a thought pops into your mind. You look at Bane who is still gathering his things. “Bane….how exactly are we leaving here?

His eyes squint as he smiles under his mask. “Down the mountain of course.” When you just stare at him with wide eyes a small laugh actually escapes him. You want to hear it again.That’s the first time you’ve heard anything resembling a laugh come from him. “We will take a snowmobile down the mountain and on the other side of the village we will board a plane. Calm down little one.”

Once you’re both packed and ready to go he takes your bag along with his. You follow him through the building and outside to a covered area where they keep the snowmobiles stored. There’s about a dozen of his men coming along. Bane pulls you aside as the men get everything loaded up and ready to travel down the mountain. You’re not sure how to interpret the look in his eyes. It’s hard with his face covered, but you’re slowly becoming familiar with some of his expressions and what they mean. “Do you want to ride down with me or would you rather Barsad take you?”

So it’s a nervous and hopeful look maybe? He doesn’t want to force you but he also wants you to choose him. Is it weird to find that adorable coming from a man like him? You give him a small smile. “I’ll ride down with you.” He nods his head once but you can see the tiny flicker in his eyes as they light up from your response. 

He climbs onto a snowmobile and looks over his shoulder at you as he extends his hand to help you. You take his hand to steady yourself as you climb onto the back sitting behind him. Then you wrap your small arms around his large frame. As he drives down the mountain you keep your head turned to the side and pressed against his back. His body blocks the wind from whipping you in the face. Even though it's cold he’s like a personal heater and keeps you warm. You oddly feel comfortable pressed up against him like this. Makes you feel safe you suppose. Your arms do eventually start to get tired from being wrapped around him for so long. Thankfully he reaches the bottom before you feel like you can’t hold on anymore. 

You never get a chance to ask Bane where you are going. He stays busy during the entire flight. You’re not sure what he’s doing but regardless he looks busy. When you ask Barsad he just shrugs his shoulders. He’s completely unhelpful when it comes to getting information. He’s very tight lipped. 

The flight is long and boring. You forgot to bring your book somehow. After a while you drift off to sleep. You briefly wake up when a body sits in the seat next to you. Without opening your eyes you know it’s Bane. He wouldn’t let anyone other than Barsad this close to you and with the way the seat moved from the extra weight you know it’s not Barsad. You lean into Bane and use his large arm as a pillow and go back to sleep. 

When you wake again it's from Bane gently shaking you. You peek one eye open and tilt your head up. “We’re about to land. Time to get up little one.”

You sit up and stretch. When you raise your arms it lifts your shirt exposing some of your bare skin. When you turn your head towards Bane he quickly lifts his eyes away from your body and back to your face. You decide not to say anything and just let it go. “Where are we?” You try asking curiously.

He frowns at your question. “It does not matter.” Then he gets up from his seat. Well you tried dammit. It’s dark outside so you can’t really see anything. Just the airstrip and it looks like another small private airfield. They probably never use the major airports now that you think about it. 

When you exit the plane you get into an SUV with Bane and Barsad. The other men load up inside two large vans. The last time you were in an SUV with them was when they were taking you from your father’s house. You try pushing those thoughts aside. You’re trying to cooperate for now until you have an opportunity to make a run for it. If you think about your father or the events that followed your angry stubborness will come out.

“Are you making me do anything or am I just along for the ride?” You hear Bane let out a sigh. Is he going to get pissy anytime you ask a question? Maybe it’s the way you said it. You asked if they were going to ‘make you’ do anything. Might as well said ‘force you’. 

Bane keeps his eyes forward from the front passenger seat that he’s occupying as he answers you. “Yes we will be in need of your technical skills on this job.” He offers you no further information than that. You decide not to pry since he seems moody all of a sudden.

Finally Barsad pulls into a parking lot of a warehouse. Bane jumps out first. Barsad gives you a small smile as he glances over his shoulder before climbing out. Then your door opens, Bane stands there completely blocking the opening. He has a serious look on his face. “Remember what I told you on your first night? What I asked of you?”

You cock your head to the side with a frown as you try to recall what he’s referring to. “That you promise to keep me safe?” He nods his head once. “And to keep you safe I need you to refer to yourself as my wife so no one dare lay a hand on you.”

You roll your eyes and sigh in annoyance. Not this shit again. It hasn’t really come up in conversation since that first night. His frown deepens on his already serious face. “I am serious (Y/N). I need you to put your stubbornness aside on this subject. I work with very bad people.”

You can tell he’s actually worried about your wellbeing. If he’s worried that can’t be a good sign. So you relent and nod your head in agreement. “Ya, okay. I got it.”

He reaches into a pocket of his jacket. He pulls something out and holds his closed fist in front of you. When he opens his hand there's a silver wedding band in his hand. You go to protest but he gives you a pleading look. You huff and hold your hand out. He slides the ring onto your left ring finger. You would really like to know why it fits you perfectly but you decide to table that conversation for a more appropriate time. 

"Thank you. Now stay with Barsad and myself at all times. Do not ask any questions. I will tell you when you are needed. Understand?"

"Yep." You say in an annoyed tone.

He narrows his eyes at you, but doesn't say anything more. He offers his hand to help you step out of the car. He keeps a loose hold on your hand as he pulls you along with him to the warehouse. It's a loose hold in case you want to pull your hand away.

He does eventually release your hand when you enter the warehouse, but he pulls you behind him first. There's a strange looking group of armed men waiting inside. "Take me to you boss." Bane's deep voice echoes through the warehouse.

They lead Bane through the warehouse until they reach an office door. The guy you are assuming that is the lead henchman of this strange bunch addresses Bane. "Only you. The rest can wait out here."

Bane shoves the door open and blindly reaches for your hand as he stares down the idiot in front of him. You hear the man audibly gulp. Once you take his hand again he walks through the door and Barsad stays close behind you.

When you hear a cackling laugh you freeze. When you see the man it's coming from you internally panic and squeeze Bane's hand as a reaction. The man sitting behind the desk is none other than the Clown Prince himself the Joker.

"Bane nice to see your ugly mug again. Good of you to bring something prettier to look at." The Joker looks you up and down with a creepy smile on his face. "So is this pretty little thing a gift for me?"

Instinctively you move closer to Bane and try hiding yourself behind him as he scolds the man behind the desk. "Keep your hands off. The girl is mine. She's only here because of her computer hacking skills." 

"So...when you say she's yours…"

You panic again and cut the Joker off as you blurt out. "I'm his wife." The words come out quickly and almost like you're yelling it. You cringe at yourself for sounding like a frightened child. Why are you more scared of the Joker than Bane? 

The Joker laughs again. "Wife huh? Who would wanna marry a guy with a face like that. Mail order bride? Want help breaking her in?"

You hear Bane take a deep breath. "Enough of your foolishness. Hands off. Now focus on the reason we are actually here."

Joker rolls his eyes. "Fine. You're still no fun. You know that? Where’s Talia by the way? She hasn’t come crawling back to you yet?”

Bane has lost the little patience he had with this man. “Enough! Start talking or we are leaving.”

Joker let's out an exaggerated sigh as he rolls his eyes once again. But he complies this time and talks business with Bane. While they are talking you tune out their conversation but inside you’re freaking the fuck out. You’re in the same room as the Joker for fuck sake. But that makes you wonder if you’re in Gotham.

“(Y/N)?” You turn your head and look up at Bane when he says your name. When you don’t say anything he realizes you weren’t listening. “I need you to find some ship manifests and locate some shipments. Can you do that?”

You nod your head in response. Bane gestures for Joker to get up so you can sit at the computer. Joker scoots back and pats his legs. “She can have a seat right here pal. I’ll keep her warm for you.”

Bane pulls his hand away from yours as he leans forward putting both of his hands on the desk. “One more inappropriate comment from you in reference to her and I will snap your neck without a second thought.” Joker jumps up out of his seat. “Come on old friend you know I’m just jerking your chain. You really need to get a sense of humor.” He’s trying to brush off the fear Bane just put in him and make it a joke instead. 

Finally you sit down at the computer and Bane stands directly behind you with his arms crossed over his chest. Like he really needs to make himself look more intimidating than he already is. You glance over your shoulder at him. “Who’s shipping manifests am I looking for?”

“Carmine Falcone.”

Oh goody another bad guy from Gotham. Carmine isn’t the scariest bad guy, but he’s a powerful bad guy. You want to ask so many questions right now, but Bane told you not to so you decide to stay quiet. You’re assuming Joker is either at war or starting a war with the mob boss. So he’s stealing his shipments. It takes you about a half hour to get all the information they need. You write everything down and hand it to Bane. “There you go, that’s all of the scheduled shipments.”

“Very good. Thank you.”

Joker goes to say something as you stand up but Bane throws him a look and the clown shuts his mouth. You bite the inside of your cheek to keep yourself from laughing. After you leave the warehouse you’re told you will be staying in one of Joker’s safe houses. And that’s all you’re told. The silence in the car is killing you and you have so many questions. So you blurt on the one question you really want to know the answer to. “Are we in Gotham?”

Bane slowly turns in his seat and looks back at you. “I work with many people from Gotham, but never inside the city. Too much interference. So no we are not in Gotham. Have you been there before?”

Even though he still hasn’t told you where you are he at least answered your question. So instead of being petty you answer him. “I lived in Gotham until I was fourteen when my mother died. I had to go live with my douche father after that.”

He doesn’t say anything in response. And shortly after that you pull up in front of what you assume is the safe house Joker is loaning Bane. You are led to a room on the second level of the house. It’s the master bedroom. Bane sits you on the bed and kneels down in front of you. He’s been acting odd all day. His moods are all over the place. 

You look down at him waiting to see what this is all about. His eyes shift a couple times as he gathers his thoughts. “I know you are frightened. But I am asking you to please not run off in spite of your fear.”

Oh so that’s what this is about, and why he won’t tell you where you are. He’s afraid you’re going to run off. Granted that’s been your plan all along, but he doesn't need to know that. You decide to be agreeable to placate him for now. “Okay, I hear you. I won’t run off.” You hear him sigh in relief. Then you have a brief moment that you feel bad for lying to his face. He’s been nice to you all day and done nothing but protect you. 

He pulls himself off the ground and stands back up. “I will stay here with you until you fall asleep. I have to go to the shipyard later. I will leave a few men behind to keep watch on the house to make sure you are safe. Understand?”

You nod your head in agreement. You bite your bottom lip as you’re thinking. Bane’s eyes drop to your lips until you clear your throat to get his attention. “Can I ask you something without you getting pissy?”

“Possibly.”

You like how he didn’t deny the part about being pissy. “Who is Talia? I heard what Joker said.”

He looks away from you as he takes his coat and boots off. Is he seriously just going to give you the cold shoulder? He could just say he doesn’t want to talk about it. He surprises you when he sits down on the bed next to you. The room is silent except for the sounds of his breathing through the mask. “Remember the prison I told you about?”

“Ya, you called it the Pit?”

“When I was in the prison a woman was brought in and locked up. She was with child at the time. A poor defenceless child was born and raised in hell. One day the doctor forgot to lock the woman’s cell and a fight broke out. The fight I told you that caused all of my injuries. The woman was killed, but I protected the child. I helped her escape. She climbed out. After she escaped she found her father and he returned to save me to repay my protection of his child he didn’t know about. Her father was Ra’s Al Ghul, the leader of the league of shadows and my mentor. Some time ago her and I had a disagreement and she left.”

Once again you are surprised he shared so much information. But you’re also glad he shared his story with you. It shows you he does have a heart. He wasn’t always a mercenary, a killer. “Thank you for telling me.” You say quietly. He nods his head once. “You should get some rest.”

The bed in the room you are currently occupying is smaller than the one in Bane’s bedroom. He lays down next to you in the bed. You are lying near the edge like you usually do, but there’s only a few inches of space between the two of you. You’re going to have to pretend to fall asleep before he’s going to leave. You try pushing your guilty thoughts aside that you're feeling for planning to leave. He took you as a payment from your father. You are not an object to be owned, you’re a person. You want your freedom, and right now you don’t really have a lot of freedom. You’re trapped with dangerous assassins 24/7.

You close your eyes and try controlling your breathing so that it seems like you have drifted off. It takes a while but eventually you feel the bed move. Then you feel fingers gently running through your hair a couple times before he finally leaves. 

You can hear car doors outside and hear when the SUV leaves. You wait about a half hour or so before sneaking out of the house and head towards the city lights you can see off in the distance. Again you have no plan other than put as much distance between you and the assassins as possible. While also ignoring the pang of guilt you feel in your chest as you make a run for it.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I borrowed a scene from the Dark Knight Rises, only a few minor changes.
> 
> This is all I have written so far. But I'm still writing I promise.

CHAPTER 7

Your second escape attempt went even more horribly than the first. You did make it a lot farther, but not on your own. Which leads to the current predicament you find yourself in. As you were running through the streets of the unknown city a van pulled out in front of you and a group of men jumped out and pulled you inside before you could even try running away. Then they jabbed a needle into your arm rendering you unconscious. 

A painful slap to the face startles you awake. You open your eyes, but your vision is blurry so it takes a moment for everything to come into focus. There’s a smug looking man standing in front of you. “Welcome back (Y/N).”

“Who the fuck are you?” You rasp out.

He crosses his arms over his chest. “I’m CIA. We’ve been looking for you for a while, and have some questions for you.” You give the man a once over with your eyes. He’s wearing a baby blue polo shirt, navy blue jacket and khakis. You burst into laughter which makes him frown at you. “You look like you’re dressed for a day of golfing. If you’re CIA then I’m the FBI.”

He slaps you across the face again. This time it splits your bottom lip open and you taste blood in your mouth. You look him in the eyes and spit the blood out on his shiny new shoes. He narrows his eyes at you. “You won’t find anything funny once we get you back to our headquarters. Now you could make things a little easier for you if you just tell me about Bane right now.”

Even though you just ran away from that man and have been trying to get away from him since the day he took you, you don’t want to tell this supposed CIA guy anything. It just feels wrong to share any of the private things he told you. Like a bigger betrayal than running away. So you go with your gut on this one and keep your mouth shut. “I don’t know who you are talking about.” You say to the man in front of you with a voice full of sarcasm. 

He leans down in front of you with his hands on his knees. “Suit yourself. We’ll do this the hard way.” Then he turns to the men dressed in military gear behind him that you didn’t notice before. “Load her up in the van. The plane is almost ready.”

Your hands are currently tied behind your back hanging over the chair you are sitting in. Two men come untie you and put you in handcuffs, but they put the cuffs in front of you. They drag you through some rundown empty building until you see the van they originally threw you into. As you’re being dragged around you can’t help but wonder how did this become your life. You were just a quiet bookworm, a loner. Now you have assassins and the CIA dragging you around. You really need to reevaluate some of your life choices, because this is just getting ridiculous. 

When the van is all loaded up the CIA guy sits across from you in the van and stares at you like he’s trying to read you. He never did give you a name, so he’ll just have to be CIA guy. His staring makes you uncomfortable, but that’s also probably what he’s trying to accomplish so you put your game face on and try not to show how freaked the fuck out you are right now. 

“Why are you being loyal to someone you ran away from?”

You look at him with a frown. How much does this guy know and how long have they been watching you? Did they question your piece of shit father? Either way you’re sticking with your decision to not tell them anything. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” You say to him coldly. He just lets out a sigh and shakes his head at you. 

The windows in the van are blacked out so you don’t know where you are or where they are taking you. You’re assuming an airport since he mentioned a plane being ready. When the van comes to a stop some time later a man roughly pulls you out. You take a look around. It’s a large empty field and there are some trees surrounding the area. Then you see a black private airplane sitting in front of a small airfield hanger.

You get pulled onto the plane and shoved in a seat towards the front. The rest of the men don’t board the plan right away. You hear some commotion outside but you can’t see what's going on from where you’re sitting. As you go to stand up so you can see the guy that dragged you onto the plan shoves a gun into your side. “Keep your traitorous ass in that seat.”

You scowl at the man. “How the fuck am I a traitor?”

“You’re protecting a very dangerous mercenary instead of helping your country.”

You go to protest but see more soldiers boarding the plane. Then you see three men with black bags over their heads and their hands tied behind their backs. Your heart starts pounding so hard you think the guy next to you might be able to actually hear it. The man in the middle, his frame is unmistakable to you. You immediately know it’s Bane. Oh boy, you are going to be in so much trouble now. You’re slightly relieved he found you but also slightly scared. He’s gotta be pissed that you ran off again. Especially after you lied to his face and promised you wouldn’t run. The CIA has no idea what they’ve just gotten themselves into. 

Once everyone is boarded onto the plane they keep the three men on their knees towards the back. They still have the bags over their heads. The CIA guy calls who you assume is his boss to update the flight plan to include you and one other unknown male as passengers. Why only one when there's three?

The plane takes off and the CIA guy stands in front of the three men. “The flight plan I just filed with the agency lists me, my men, (Y/N) here, and only one of you. The first one to talk gets to stay on my aircraft.”

Your eyes go wide and you turn in your seat so you can see what's happening. Would they really throw two of them off? The door at the back of the plane is opened. They grab the first man and hang his head and shoulders outside of the plan. The CIA guy leans down on him with a gun in his hand. “Tell me about the league of shadows. Where is their hideout?” 

When the man half hanging out of the plane gives no response the CIA guy shoots his gun next to the man’s head then pulls him back in. “He didn’t fly so good. Who wants to try next?” Then he points to the second guy who is on the other side of Bane. They grab him like the first and hang him out the open door. “Tell me about Bane. Why does he wear the mask?” The CIA guy says as he kneels down over him. He cocks the gun next to the man’s ear when he says nothing. “A lot of loyalty for a hired gun.”

Even with the loud sounds of the wind from the open door you can hear when Bane takes a deep breath in his mask just before he speaks. “Well perhaps he’s wondering why someone would shoot a man before throwing him out of a plane.”

They pull the second man back in and close the door. The CIA guy stands in front of Bane. “At least you can talk. Who are you?”

Bane’s voice runs a chill down your spine. “It doesn’t matter who we are. What matters is our plan.” That wasn’t ominous at all. 

The CIA guy kneels down and slowly reaches for the black bag covering his face. Bane continues talking as he slowly pulls it off. “No one cared who I was till I put on the mask.”

“If I pull that off will you die?” The CIA guy asks cautiously. 

“It would be extremely painful.”

“You’re a big guy.”

“For you.”

You’ve had your eyes on Bane this entire time. He has yet to even look at you. As they go back and forth with each other you feel your anxiety rising. Bane wouldn’t be here without a plan. You’re worried what that plan entails since you are in an airplane. 

“Was getting caught part of your plan?”

“Of course. You took something that belonged to me. I needed to get her back and find out what she told you.”

You feel panicked at the last part. Does he really think you would tell anyone the personal things he’s told you? “Nothing! I said nothing!” You shout towards Bane. For the first time he locks eyes with you. The look he gives you actually frightens you. Yep he’s pissed. He doesn’t say anything to you. The look in his eyes tells you enough. 

The CIA guy ignores you as he continues talking to Bane. “Well, Congratulations, You got yourself caught. No what’s the next step of your master plan?”

Bane exhales loudly. “Crashing this plan.” Then he stands tearing the rope that was binding his wrists behind his back. “With no survivors!”

Suddenly there’s men outside of the plan shooting through the windows. You drop to the floor to protect yourself. A fight ensues between the military men and Bane with his men. The plane starts shaking and tips downward like it's doing a nose dive. The wings of the plane shatter and tear off flying away in the wind. Still the plane stays airborne instead of falling which you don’t understand how or what’s happening. You sit back in your seat and put your hands that are still cuffed together on the seat in front of you to hold yourself in place so you don’t fall. 

When the gunfire stops you peek your head out and see Bane hanging from a seat at the back of the plane with one hand. He lets go, dropping down and catching himself on the seat next to you. You hear an explosion as the tail of the plane tears off leaving a wide open hole at the back of the plane that’s pointed up towards the sky. Two of Bane’s men along with what looks like a body bag drop down through the opening. Bane moves and balances himself between your seat and the one he was just in. He pulls open the body bag and you see a dead woman inside. He pulls a tube out and grabs your arm. You have to hold yourself up with your feet on the seat since you are still handcuffed and he pulled your arm away. You’re frozen in fear and are barely phased when he jabs a needle into your arm. 

One of the men starts pumping the chest of the dead woman you see your blood being suctioned through the tube into the dead body. When Bane finishes with that he pulls a harness out of the body bag and straps it around your body. One of his men in a seat below yours starts wrapping one around himself. Bane puts a hand on his shoulder. “No. They expect one of us in the wreckage brother.”

Without hesitation or a second thought he hands the harness and rope back to Bane. Like he doesn’t care that he’s about to die. All the other men get pulled up into another plane that you can now see flying above the one you are currently in. That’s how this one has been staying in the air. Bane scoops you up tightly in his arms as you start screaming. He’s going to make you jump from a plane again. 

He’s holding a trigger in his hand. “Calm down little one. Now is not the time for fear. That comes later.” Then he pushes a button on the trigger. It releases the broken plan. You scream as it falls back to the earth below and realize you are hanging by a single rope from the other airplane hundreds of miles in the air. And you pissed off a very large and dangerous mercenary.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Got two more chapters done tonight. I was on a roll.

CHAPTER 8

You and Bane are pulled inside a large cargo plane. Once inside Bane practically drags you through the plane. When he gets to the area that has seats he very angrily shoves you into a seat. He looks at you with anger in his eyes. “You will stay here and will not move. I will tie you to the seat myself if you do.” You lift your cuffed hands to ask for him to at least remove the handcuffs. He points a finger inches from your face. “Not a word. I don’t want to hear a single word from you right now.”

You quickly close your mouth. Despite his obvious anger he gently grips your chin and looks at your split lip. He tilts your head back to see if there’s any other injuries. His free hand grazes your arm that has bruises from being gripped so tightly from the military guys with the CIA. “I only want you to nod your head yes or no. Are you badly injured anywhere?”

You shake your head no. In response he gives you one last glare before he storms away. Oh ya he’s beyond pissed at you. You are left completely alone the entire flight. You haven’t even seen Barsad anywhere. Maybe he’s pissed at you too.

When it starts to get extra cold on the plane you assume you’re getting close to Nanda Parbat. You’re shivering because the CIA took your coat. So you only have a t-shirt and jeans on. And you can’t wrap your arms around yourself because you're still in handcuffs. Bane is very creative when he delves out punishments, you give him that. He can torture you without laying a hand on you.

Eventually Bane comes and checks on you. He shows you some mercy and removes the handcuffs. You open your mouth to say thank you but he gives you a cold and angry look. Right, he said he didn’t want you to talk to him. So you keep your mouth shut. He hands you a jacket. “Put it on and get up.” You do as you're told and follow him through the plane. When the back of the cargo plane opens that’s when you realize you have to jump to get out. You are so sick and tired of planes. You never want to step foot in one again after this. 

Bane wraps a harness around himself then grabs you without warning and jumps off the plane. You really tried not to scream, but he was so quick about it you weren’t ready so you scream almost the entire way down. When his feet touch the ground he doesn’t gently hold you in his arms like the last time he sets you on the ground and steps away from you. You’re wearing boots this time, but you're also wearing jeans. They are going to get soaked in the snow. He doesn’t offer to carry you like last time. He just points toward his home signaling for you to move. Not wanting to piss him off more than he already is you put your head down and start walking. 

When you approach the entrance you see Barsad and smile at him. But he gives you a look of disapproval in return. Okay, he’s angry at you also. He doesn’t say a word as you pass by him to get inside. Bane points down a hallway. “Go to my room and wait. Now.” He has a harshness to his tone, and against your will your eyes start to water. You quickly turn away so he doesn’t see and walk to his room. The short time you’ve known him he’s never actually spoken to you cruelly or with anger. So him being this mad at you kind of hurts. But you suppose you hurt him first.

When you get to his room you change out of your now soaked clothes from the snow. You’re still cold since there’s no fire going in the fireplace. So you curl up in his bed under the blankets and wait. It’s at least an hour later before he comes in, but he still looks just as pissed as when he first looked at you. 

Bane paces back and forth in front of the bed with his arms crossed and a scowl on his face. “Tell me why. And it would be wise of you to choose your next words carefully.”

You open and close your mouth a couple times looking like a fish. “This whole situation is scary to me. I don’t want to be a possession or an object to be owned. I wanted my freedom. I thought you were lying about the whole CIA thing to scare me. Obviously I was very wrong about that.”

He stopped pacing when you started talking, but he has resumed his pacing again. He shakes his head and you hear a growl like sound come from his mask. “I have never mistreated you. Nor have I ever lied to you. But you….” He points a finger at you again like when you were on the plane. “You lied right to my face and I believed you. You saw what I do to men I cannot trust.”

Your eyes go wide as you are instantly filled with fear. That thought never occurred to you. Is he going to snap your neck like he did to those men? “I….are…..are you going to….”

He lets out a humorless laugh. You did want to hear him laugh again, but not like that. That was a terrifying laugh. “No I am not going to kill you. I kill men, not women or children. But I do not trust you now.”

“Why did you even bother coming after me? Were you that worried I was going to talk? Because I didn’t. I didn’t tell them anything. I refused to talk so they said they were taking me somewhere else.”

Bane stops pacing again. He still looks angry, but he also looks hurt. “Because I do truly care about you. And they would have made you talk eventually. They were taking you to a black site just like I told you in the beginning. They would have used your one weakness against you, your younger brother. You not only put yourself in danger, but also your brother.”

“Oh my god! Do you know if he’s alright?!”

“He’s fine. But you are officially dead. Therefore neither of you will be in any danger.”

You frown at him. What is that supposed to mean? Then you remember the dead woman on the plane. That’s why he took your blood. So it looked like you died in the plane crash. Now your brother is going to think you’re dead. The one person in the entire world that you care about. “You killed an entire plane full of people and one of your own men to fake my death? Seriously?!”

“No! You killed them. Your actions lead to their deaths. Had you stayed put they would all still be alive!” Tears start spilling from your eyes at his words. He’s right. You may not have pulled the trigger yourself, but your actions led to it. Your vision gets blurry from all the tears so you can’t see Bane’s face anymore. You can see movement, so you try wiping your eyes. All you see is the back of Bane as he leaves the room.

That night you cry yourself to sleep. Bane never returned, so you slept alone the entire night. Even though you’ve only been with them a few weeks you were starting to get used to having him lying next to you. When you wake in the morning there’s a knock on the door. You assume it’s Barsad and are happy to not have to be alone. But you are greatly disappointed when you open the door and see it’s some unknown league member. He hands you a tray with food and walks away without a word.

You plop down in the chair at the small table in Bane’s room with slumped shoulders. You and Barsad were becoming friends, or at least you thought you were. Even when you and Bane didn’t talk for a week the first time you ran off he was there to keep you company. So he must be really pissed at you. You honestly thought the CIA thing was a load of crap when Bane first told you. Had you understood you were putting your brother in danger you would have never run off. You should have believed him, because he really hasn’t lied to you about anything. So why would he lie about that?

Two days go by like that. You don’t see Bane or Barsad at all. Some nameless league member brings you all of your meals and you don’t leave the bedroom. You feel completely alone and the guilt of everything that happened is weighing on you. A lot of men died because of you. The man that’s been protecting you won’t even stay in the same room as you now. At one point you collapse onto the floor and press your back against a wall as you sob. You don’t hear the knock on the door for whoever is bringing you your dinner. You start crying so hard you make yourself hyperventilate. 

You try catching your breath but you can’t stop crying so you can’t seem to calm yourself down. The tears spilling non stop from your eyes cloud your vision. Suddenly you feel hands on your shoulders. “(Y/N) calm down.” It’s Barsad and he’s kneeling down in front of you. 

“I’m...sorry…” You gasp out in between the short breaths you’re taking. He wraps his arms around you. “I know but I need you to calm down. Slow deep breaths (Y/N). Breath with me.” You take in several shaky breaths. It takes a few minutes before you finally get your breathing under control and back to normal.

“I’m sorry Barsad.” You whisper quietly against his shoulder. When he doesn’t say anything you feel a lump in your throat as the sobs threaten to start up again. “Please don’t hate me. I don’t want to be alone anymore. I’m sorry.” You rasp out in a shaky voice. 

He still has his arms around you and gives you a squeeze. “I know you are, and I don’t hate you (Y/N). I’m sorry too, you’ve been punished enough. I didn’t realize you would be this upset.”

You pull away from him so you can see his face once you wipe the tears away. “I promise I won’t run again, and I won’t lie either. You have to believe me.”

“I do, I believe you. It’s Bane that will take some more convincing.”


	9. Chapter 9

CHAPTER 9

It’s been over a week since you last spoke to Bane or even saw him. He’s not even sleeping in his bedroom. But Barsad has kept you company. He’ll eat with you or sometimes takes you around the building with him when he does various tasks. 

You’ve asked Barsad a couple times where Bane is. He gives you the same answer every time. That Bane is still mad and needs time to cool off. How long of a cool off period does the man need? How are you supposed to apologize if he won’t even be seen in the same room as you? It’s frustrating but it also hurts. You’ve been afraid to admit since almost the beginning that there’s something about him that draws you in. And you had been fighting tooth and nail to push those thoughts and feelings away. He’s a mercenary. You shouldn’t feel anything for a man like him. But he’s shown you several times he’s more than that. Your life changed so drastically and so quickly it frightened and overwhelmed you. 

You are sitting outside in the covered area with Barsad as he repairs a broken snowmobile. Apparently he’s a jack of all trades. Your contribution is to hand him tools whenever he asks for one. He’s just trying to make you feel useful, but you’re not going to complain. You have something you’ve been wanting to ask him, but also been too afraid to. The worst case scenario would be he tells you no. “Hey Barsad…?”

He just grunts in response as he focuses on the broken part he’s trying to remove. “Could you….would you um…..teach me how to fight?” He jolts upright quickly and smacks his forehead on the handle of the snowmobile. He gives you a confused and worried look as he rubs his forehead. “You mean like an assassin? You want to join the league?”

You shake your head vehemently. “God no, absolutely not. I mean just so that I can actually defend myself and not feel like a helpless damsel in distress.” He looks significantly less freaked out once you explain yourself. 

He scratches his head as he thinks. “It’s a completely reasonable request. I agree you should be able to defend yourself. Especially with the type of people we work with.” Your face lights up, then you get the feeling there’s a ‘but’ coming. “But I still need to clear it with Bane.”

You roll your eyes and scoff. “So he won’t speak to me but he thinks he can control every aspect of my life. Shouldn’t this be my choice not his?”

Barsad shakes his head. “It’s not that. He really does care about you. You are likely going to end up with bumps and bruises if we do this. Which will anger him. You saw what he did to the men that just looked at you the wrong way. So I need to talk to him first.”

“Why does he care so much? I’m nothing special and he barely knew me before my father so graciously offered me up as payment.”

Barsad shakes his head at you again as he sighs. “You are too special. I like you, you made me your friend and I don’t really keep friends.” You know he won’t answer you about Bane’s feelings, but it was worth a shot. He promises you he’ll talk to Bane later and let you know. At least he didn’t outright say no, and he did technically agree with you on the subject.

The next day when Barsad meets you for breakfast he tells you that he will start working with you a couple hours a day. He never told you what Bane’s response was, but it wasn’t no at least. When Barsad gave you the good news you jumped up out of your seat and practically threw yourself at him as you hugged him. 

Over the next couple days Barsad trains with you in the morning for about two hours. Still no sign of Bane, and it’s getting close to almost two weeks since you last spoke to him. 

You basically get your ass handed to you everyday. Sadly you can tell Barsad is holding back too. He’s been going easy on you. But he keeps encouraging you since he understands you have zero fighting experience. 

You did find some useful clothes in the bag your dad had packed for you for the first time since you arrived. There were some yoga pants and snug tank tops. It’s very form fitting to your curves but it’s the most comfortable thing you have and you don’t want to wear the ninja looking crap you see the league members wear. 

Barsad knocks you down for like the tenth time this morning and lands on top of you. His body is wedged between your legs and you bite back a moan as his thigh accidently presses against your core. You are so incredibly wound up. You haven’t been able to relieve any tension or tend to your needs since you left home. You’ve been too paranoid to even attempt something like that since you were sharing a room with Bane. And it’s been quite some time since a man has touched you. You know Barsad did it on accident so you don’t want to make things weird or awkward.

He helps you back to your feet and you shake your head trying to clear your mind. “You okay (Y/N)?” He has a concerned look on his face. You nod your head at him. “Ya I’m good. Let’s go again.”

He again knocks you over but this time you land on your front and he’s pressed up against your body from behind. He’s got one hand on the ground and the other on your lower back. You bite your lip thankful that he can’t see your face. Oh this is killing you. Maybe you should call it a day and take a cold shower. You’re pulled from your inappropriate thoughts as he pulls you back up with his hands around your waist. 

Seriously? Is he doing this shit on purpose? Or are you just that incredibly horny everything seems sexual. You’re assuming it's the latter.

The final time he knocks you down he again lands between your legs as you lie flat on your back but he’s got your hands pinned down above your head. You’re both covered in sweat since you’ve been going at it for a while. Your chest is heaving from trying to catch your breath. He smiles down at you. You finally crack when he presses against your core again. You lean up and capture his lips for a kiss.


	10. Chapter 10

CHAPTER 10

Caught up in your cloudy lust filled mind you kissed Barsad. He didn’t stop you. Well, not right away. He seems to come to his senses after a couple seconds and rolls away from you like he’s been burned. His eyes are wide with panic. “No, no, no, no. This can’t happen. No.”

You open your mouth to speak but he puts his hand up and backs further away to put more space between the two of you. “No. Just no. He will kill me, slowly and painfully.” You cock your head to the side and frown. “What are you talking about?”

“Bane will murder me but not until he is done torturing me. I like you (Y/N) I really do, but not like that. Tell me you understand.”

You are so confused. Well sort of. You’ve noticed some small things. Subtle ways Bane shows you affection. He obviously feels something for you, the guy killed a plane full of people to rescue you. But would he seriously hurt Barsad? “I honestly didn’t mean to do that. I just wasn't thinking clearly. I’m sorry it won’t happen again. I only want you to be my friend, nothing more, I swear. But why would Bane kill you? You’re his right hand man.”

Barsad wipes a hand down his face. He started sweating again and it wasn't from the training session. "Like I said (Y/N) he cares about you. That's all I'm going to say."

"Okay, fine." You bite your lip nervously as you look at Barsad. "Are you going to stop training me now?"

His face softens, but he still looks worried. "I won't as long as you promise me that won't happen again. We're only friends."

"I promise. Only friends." You say with a glimmer of hope in your eyes. He's really your only friend. So you're hoping you didn't just fuck everything up with one stupid mistake.

"Okay. Let's stop for today. Start fresh tomorrow."

You smile and nod your head in agreement. He pulls himself off the floor and then extends his hand to help you to your feet. Before you part ways he gives you a hug.

As you walk back to Bane's room, which has technically only been your room recently, you scold yourself. At least Barsad talked it out with you. Unlike some people, who just ignore you for two weeks straight. 

When you enter your room you start peeling your sweaty clothes off, leaving a trail all the way to the bathroom. You decide to take a hot bath and deal with your personal problem since no one is around.

Eventually you climb out of the bathtub and feel less tense. You wrap a towel around you and hum quietly to yourself as you exit the bathroom. 

You startle when you open the door and see eyes looking back at you. "Aahhh! God dammit, fuck me. You scared the shit out of me."

Bane raises an eyebrow at you and slowly turns around. You frown thinking he’s going to leave without speaking to you. Then you look down and realize you’re standing there in just a towel. Right, he’s trying to be a gentleman. “Shit.” You mutter to yourself under your breath. Quickly you gather some clothes and run back into the bathroom to get dressed. How long has he been out there? Of course the one time you finally take care of some personal needs he shows up. But your embarrassment is the least of your problems right now.

You’re hoping Bane doesn’t leave so you dress as fast as you can and stumble out of the bathroom when you rip the door back open. You internally sigh in relief when you see him sitting at the foot of the bed with his eyes cast down to the floor. Then you start to feel nervous because you’re not sure where to start with him. “I’m sorry.” You say to him quietly. 

He slowly lifts his head and looks you in the eyes. He has an unreadable expression on his face. When he doesn’t say anything you take a couple steps closer as you nervously fidget with your fingers. “It’s been two weeks. Where have you been hiding?”

You can hear the sounds of his breathing through the mask. He sits up a little straighter, but still keeps his eyes locked onto yours. “I just got back. I had to complete the job I was originally hired for by Joker.”

You give him a confused look. “But Barsad never said that you left. He made it seem like…” Suddenly you come to a realization which gives you mixed feelings. “You didn’t want me to know you were gone because you thought I’d run again if I knew. Am I right?”

“Clever girl.” He says just barely above a whisper.

Taking a deep breath you try to steel your nerves. “I know you won’t believe me, so I guess I’ll just have to prove it to you. But I have no intention of running again. There’s nothing for me out there now. The only family member I care about thinks I’m dead, and I don’t want to endanger my brother.”

“We shall see then won’t we.”

You take a couple more steps closer so that you are standing directly in front of him. Then you gently grab his hand and hold it. His face softens with the physical contact. “I really am sorry. Thank you for protecting me, and my brother.”

He gives you a slight nod. With his free hand he runs his fingertips across the bruises on your arm. You’re pretty sure he can see when the goosebumps appear on your skin. “How is your training?”

Images from earlier this morning pop into your head making you feel guilty for reasons you don’t want to admit just yet. So you try pushing all of that aside. “He’s going easy on me and I’m still getting my ass kicked. Work in progress I guess you could say. How did he talk to you? It's not like there’s cell service around here…..you have satellite phones hidden somewhere don’t you?”

The corners of his eyes are slightly crinkled. Must have gotten a small smile out of him. “Like I said, clever girl.”

“So you really don’t mind Barsad training me?”

He looks down at your still joined hands and gives yours a light squeeze. “While I do not like seeing you with a bruised body, I do agree you should be able to protect yourself.” You give him a small smile in response. This is a good start. He’s talking to you at least. Baby steps in the right direction.

A few weeks go by. You’ve decided to make the best of your current situation. The world thinks you’re dead. You didn’t really have friends back home, more like acquaintances. You didn’t have a real job, only working for your douche father. So really there wasn’t a lot going for you. 

The only person you truly care about, your brother, could be put in danger by being around you. He sadly thinks you’re dead now anyway. As much as you miss him and hate the thought of hurting him you’ve always done everything possible to protect him. He was the young, innocent and smart one. You love him dearly and will keep him safe from afar.

It's early in the morning and you wake pressed up against Bane's bare chest. Which has been happening more frequently lately. Apparently you seek him out in your sleep. But you can't deny that you like waking up this way. He's extremely warm for one, but he also makes you feel safe. You've slowly come to admit you feel something for him.

He has his arm loosely draped over you. The two of you have gotten closer over the last few weeks since you've stopped fighting him constantly. He's slowly forgiving you for lying and running off. But you don't think he completely trusts you yet.

You lazily trace your finger across the various scars you can see littered across his body. You know he's awake without looking. Just by the way he's breathing you can tell. "Bane, can I ask you something?"

"You just did." He says flatly. Oh yes, he has started showing you his sarcastic sense of humor recently. 

You roll your eyes at him even though he can't see your face. "Smartass." You mutter against his chest. "Fine, I'm going to ask another. Will you ever let me see you with your mask off?"

"Do you really want to?" He almost whispers the words to you.

You lean up on your elbow so you can see his eyes. "I wouldn't have asked if I didn't want to." You throw some sarcasm back at him. But you can see the worry in his eyes. You've been getting better and reading his expressions with just his eyes. "Do you not want me to?"

"What if you don't like what you see?"

You put your free hand on his cheek. It's mostly covered by his mask but there's a little skin to make contact with. "I highly doubt that would be the case. What are you worried about? Do you have scars on your face too?"

"A few, but they are not as prominent as they used to be."

"Your scars don't bother me and I'm not a vain type of person. But it's obviously your choice."

He looks you in the eyes for a prolonged amount of time. Like he's trying to read your mind. "Okay little one, I'll take the mask off."


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some fluff for Christmas.

CHAPTER 11

Anxiously you pace around the bedroom. Bane went into the bathroom to take whatever it is he needs to be able to take the mask off. He has some sort of temporary pain medication. It's an injection he has to give himself, then it takes a little time to kick in.

When you asked him about taking the mask off you honestly didn't expect him to do it right away. You've tried picturing what he looks like under the mask ever since you met him.

When you hear the bathroom door open you quickly turn and face the door. You feel a little disappointed when you see he's still wearing the mask. Maybe he changed his mind.

He goes and sits on the side of the bed. He waves his hand wordlessly calling you to him. You comply and go stand in front of him. "Change your mind?" You try asking without disappointment in your voice.

He takes your hand and positions it on one side of the mask. "You pull it off from here." He says in a low voice. 

"You want me to do it? Are you sure the pain meds have kicked in?" He just nods his head once. You assume he's saying yes to both of your questions. So you put both hands on either side of his mask and look him in the eyes. "You sure you're ready?" He takes a deep breath and gives you one slight nod.

Slowly you pull on the straps and lift it. You can see his shoulders tense up so you stop moving. "Am I hurting you? Want me to stop?"

"No." Is all he whispers in response.

So you resume what you were doing and gently pull it all the way off. You set the mask on the bed. Then you take a small step back. For the first time you lay eyes on the man under the mask. 

He looks even more nervous when you don't say anything right away. You put both of your hands on his face and smile brightly at him. "You're even more handsome than I imagined. It should be a crime to hide this beautiful face."

He gives you a shy smile. It's like looking at an entirely different person. Like he's not the same man you were just speaking to moments ago. He looks so much less intimidating without the mask. You do see the handful of scars he was referring to earlier, but they aren't that bad. "You have a beautiful smile too. I don't know what you were so worried about."

He bites his bottom lip like you often do, but he looks incredibly sexy doing so. "I feel….exposed without the mask. I suppose that's the simplest way of explaining it."

You still have your hands on his handsome face. You run your thumb across his bottom lip. Then look back to his eyes. "You don't have to hide from me." Then you lean forward and press your lips to his.

His lips are soft and warm. It takes him a moment to take in what's happening. Once his mind catches up he puts his large hands on your waist and kisses you back. If someone would have told you a few months ago that you would be kissing the scary masked mercenary you would have laughed in their face. But now as you move your lips against his you wish you would have stopped fighting your feelings and done this sooner.

When you break the kiss you rest your forehead against his, and he keeps his hands on your body. “I have wanted to do that since I first laid eyes on you.” Bane whispers to you and you feel his breath ghost across your lips. 

You lean back so you can see his face better and smile at him. “I know your secret.” He gives you a confused look, which it’s nice to see his entire facial expressions. For once you don’t have to go off his eyes only. “Underneath that mask you’re not the big scary man you make everyone think you are.”

He gives you a true smile in return. “You can’t go around telling people that. I do have a reputation to uphold.”

“It can be our secret then.” You lean forward and kiss him gently once more. It’s short and sweet. “How long until you have to put the mask back on?”

He looks at you sheepishly. Which is a strange response coming from him. “Normally an hour. But it took me some time to get over my unease of taking the mask off. So maybe another twenty minutes or so.”

“Well let's not waste any more time then.” You wrap your arms around his neck and crash your lips against his.   
After that first kiss you both finally let go and stopped holding back your feelings for each other.

He slides his hands down from your waist to your thighs and pulls you into his lap. The swift motion makes you gasp against his lips. He seizes the opportunity to slip his tongue into your mouth. 

As his hands explore your body you moan into his mouth. Suddenly you’re being flipped onto your back, flat on the bed. You squeal and laugh as he pounces on top of you. He never put a shirt on when he got out of bed earlier. You run your hands across his bare back as he moves his lips to your neck. His large body is positioned between your legs. You can feel him getting hard, and it's making you want more. He moves his lips back to yours and grinds against you making you moan.

Twenty minutes goes by fast when you’re making out with a sexy mercenary. Just as things get heated you feel his whole body tense up. He stops kissing you and gently rests his forehead against yours. “Do you need to put the mask back on?” You feel him nod his head. “Yes. But I really don’t want to.”

“Can you take another dose of the pain meds?”

“I could but too much makes me drowsy and my mind hazy.”

You close the small space between you and kiss him as you put your hands on his face. “Well I’m guessing you don’t like either of those side effects. So you better put the mask on before the pain gets worse. We can pick this up later.”

He lets out a growl at his annoyance for having to stop. You can tell he’s hurting by how tense his body feels, and he’s not as hard as he was a few minutes ago. He gives you one more deep and passionate kiss. When he pulls away he lets out a defeated sigh along with a groan as he sits upright reaching for his mask. 

You climb into his lap and take the mask from his hands to help put it on. “It really is a shame to hide this handsome face.” You say as you press a quick kiss to his lips then put the mask back into its place.

Bane takes several slow deep breaths once he has the mask back on. You can see the pain in his eyes. "Are you okay?" 

He doesn't answer you right away. You're still in his lap so he puts one hand on your hip. With the other he gently grazes your cheek with the back of his hand. You hear him exhale slowly. "Yes. I'm fine now."

You run your hands across his bare chest and bite your lip. He gives you a questioning look. "I'm just curious. When's the last time you kissed someone?"

You see the corners of his eyes crinkle. You wonder if he's also biting his lip under that mask. "Was it that bad?" You can hear a hint of humor in his voice.

"You weren't bad at all. You were quite good actually." You tap your finger against the front of his mask. "This kind of hinders things. So I was just wondering."

He cups your cheek as he locks eyes with you. "It's been a very long time. No one sees beyond the mask. With your stubbornness I didn't expect you would either."

You have mixed feelings about what he just said. "Well can you really blame me considering the circumstances? But I'm trying now. I see there's more to you than what meets the eye." 

You lean forward and kiss his forehead as you wrap your arms around him. He does the same and holds you in a tight embrace.


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So Edward Nygma aka The Riddler is going to be in the story soon. He's going to be like the early season one of Gotham version. When he was awkward and adorable before he went crazy and developed a taste for murder and mayhem.

CHAPTER 12

Rolling over in your bed you seek out your personal heater in the early morning, but come up empty. Maybe he’s restarting the fire, you think to yourself. After rubbing the sleep from your eyes you squint them open. You see Bane across the room packing a bag. You lean up on your elbow with a frown. “You’re leaving?” Your voice is raspy since you just woke up.

He turns at the sound of your voice. “Yes.” Is his only response. You really hate when he gives you short answers. Then you have to pry to get more details. “Am I staying here?” You ask hesitantly. 

That question gets him to stop what he’s doing. He stands up straight and takes a couple steps closer. He crosses his arms over his chest as he looks at you. “I suppose that entirely depends on you. Can you be trusted?”

Well that kind of hurt. “I know I kind of deserved that, but I thought we had moved past all that. You really think I’m faking my feelings for you?” A sigh escapes him as he walks toward you and sits on the edge of the bed. He leans over and runs a hand across your cheek and through your hair. “No of course I don’t.”

You pull yourself up and climb into his lap. Immediately his large hands go to your hips. You kiss part of his cheek that’s not covered by the mask. “I’m not going to run. I’m not going anywhere. But if you want me to stay here I understand.”

He slides his hands up your body until both reach your face. Then strokes his thumbs across your cheekbones as he looks into your eyes. "Okay little one. Go get ready." 

You smile excitedly and hold your left hand up, wiggling your fingers. "I'm going to need something back then aren't I?"

During your last failed escape attempt you left the fake wedding ring on the nightstand. The look he gives you in response is hard to interpret with the mask on, but you think he looks surprised. 

He shifts you over onto one leg and reaches into his pants pocket. He pulls the wedding band out that's hanging on a chain necklace, and drops it into your open hand. "Take better care of it this time."

"I will. I promise."

As you’re walking into a nightclub with Bane and several of his men, part of you wishes you would have asked more questions before asking to come with him. It’s a club owned by Joker in a city neighboring Gotham. Apparently he needed Bane again. You asked Bane why he agreed to work for the Clown Prince because his dislike for the man is pretty obvious. He said he pays well and it’s usually an interesting job. 

The club is loud and crammed full of people. This is definitely not your kind of scene. You've actually never been inside a nightclub. You follow Bane with Barsad right behind you. Once you go through a door and it closes you can finally hear yourself think again. And you can hear the signature laugh of the Joker. He still scares the crap out of you. He's notorious for being unpredictable and irrational. So you keep yourself hidden behind Bane.

"Bane you big behemoth, you stick out like a sore thumb in this place."

You roll your eyes. If that insufferable clown didn't frighten you so much you'd slap him across his painted face. 

"What do you need Joker?" Bane's deep voice is far more intimidating than Joker’s. 

He completely ignores Bane's question. "I see you brought that pretty little wife of yours again. Come on out sugar, can't hide behind Goliath all night."

Bane puts his arm out signaling for you to stay put. "Leave her be. Now do you have somewhere for her to work or not?"

"It's always straight to business with you. You really need to lighten up. Is the Mrs. not lightening your load? Get it? Load?" He says as he laughs at his own immature joke. You roll your eyes again, but he’s not wrong. You and Bane haven’t gone further than your little make out session. He doesn’t need to know that though.

"Don't test me clown." Bane warns.

You hear an annoyed sigh. "Why do I bother? Wasted a good joke on you. There's a laptop on the desk."

Bane reaches for your hand, you immediately grab his. He pulls you across the room to the desk Joker was referring to. You take a seat behind the desk and glance around the room for the first time. Joker is staring at you and winks when you accidentally lock eyes with him. You quickly look away. 

Joker and Bane go back and forth about the job. Unlike the previous encounter with Joker, you pay attention this time. It's about Carmine Falcone again. He found another way to get his shipments into the city. What's in the shipments you aren't sure and probably don't want to know. But Joker wants to intercept the ‘merchandise’.

As they're talking you start going to work even though no one told you to. You got enough information by listening to them. You start hacking into Falcone's records and check under his aliases.

"Why am I not fucking surprised." You accidentally blurt out when you find something. You bite your lip and look at Bane sheepishly. 

The corners of his eyes are slightly crinkled, he's smiling or at the very least smirking at you. "What is it little one?"

"Well while you two were talking I got the gist of what you needed me to do. And I found something. Falcone is working with Daggett Industries." You don’t say father because you’re not sure if Joker knows who you really are or who your father is.

Bane immediately understands what your outburst was about. "Are they using ships or trucks?"

"I don't know." That makes Bane frown as he gives you a questioning look. "I created the security system. I need direct access to their network. I can only break into it from a server inside one of the buildings of Daggett Industries."

Bane nods his head in understanding as he thinks. A wide almost evil smile makes its way onto your face. Oh you are so going to find a way to fuck your dad over. That son of a bitch won't know what hit him. Suddenly Joker starts cackling, pulling you from your vengeful plotting. "My my look at that devious smile. You're not as innocent as you look, are you sweetheart? I bet you're a firecracker in the bedroom."

"JOKER!" Bane's angry voice startles everyone including you. "I warned you once already. I will not warn you again. I will break you in half if you so much as look at her the wrong way."

Joker puts his hands up like he's surrendering but does it with a smile on his face. Bane grabs your hand and pulls you along with him out of the nightclub.

The next day Bane is busy working on a way to get you into one of your father's buildings without being seen. So he's letting Barsad take you to a bookstore in the area. It's hard to get things in Nanda Parbat so you wanted to seize the opportunity to get things to take home. Yes you started calling it home finally.

You're practically bouncing in your seat in the car as Barsad is driving. He chuckles at you. "I think this is the most excited I've ever seen you."

"I love books, I love reading. And I kind of lost my personal collection so I haven't been able to read as much." You say with a pout on your face.

Thankfully after your little incident with Barsad things have gone back to normal with your friendship. There's no awkwardness, you were worried that would be an issue. You both agreed to never speak about the kiss again, and then moved on from it. 

The sound of Barsad's voice pulls your thoughts. "You make him happy you know."

"Huh?"

"Bane. You make him happy. He hides his emotions well but I've known him for a long time. I can tell. And I think since things have gotten better you've finally allowed him to make you happy."

You give him a shy smile. "Very perceptive you are. How long have you known each other anyway?"

Barsad glances at you nervously as a sigh escapes him. "We were in the same prison together. He came back for me. After he got the mask and Ra's Al Ghul took him in he freed me and I joined the league."

You look at him with wide eyes. Neither of them ever told you that Barsad was in the Pit also. "That's why you stay so loyal to him. Because he freed you, you feel indebted to him."

He has a small smile on his face. "Very perceptive you are." 

When he pulls up to the bookstore you get a sad smile on your face. You’ve been here before. Many times actually. Barsad sees the sadness in your eyes. “(Y/N) what’s wrong?”

“Nothing. It’s just I used to bring my little brother Eddie here every weekend up until he left for college. It was kind of our thing to do together. He likes to read just as much as I do. I really miss him, that’s all.”

Barsad puts his hand on your shoulder. “I understand, but you’re keeping him safe now. That’s what's important.” 

As you wander around the bookstore in your ‘disguise’ you pile books into Barsad’s arms. Your disguise is just a baseball cap and some fake glasses. Bane insisted if you’re out in the city that you try disguising yourself since you’re supposed to be dead. He doesn’t want any government agencies getting tipped off that you are very much alive.

You notice Barsad keeps looking all over the store and pacing around. It’s starting to get annoying. “What’s up? What’s with the pacing?”

“Just doing my job and keeping you safe.” He says nonchalantly. 

You roll your eyes. Yeah you’re going to get mugged or robbed in a bookstore. Whatever. You decide to turn your back to him and ignore his annoying pacing. As you leave the aisle you were perusing you turn down another one and stop dead in your tracks. A couple aisles away you spot your younger brother, Eddie. He’s flipping through a book and then lifts his head to look around. You panic and jump back behind a bookshelf. Oh how bad you want to just run over to him and hug him. But you would be putting him in danger. It would be selfish of you to do that to him. 

Tears start dripping down your cheeks and your heart is pounding. Suddenly Barsad is standing right in front of you. “What is it? What’s wrong?” You close your eyes and take a deep breath. “My brother is here.” You whisper quietly. He looks around as he digs through his coat pocket. He hands you the keys to the car. “Go out the side entrance and wait in the car. I’ll pay for your stuff.”

As he walks away you peek around the bookshelf and take one last look at Eddie. He has an armful of books himself that he’s trying to balance as he pulls another book off a shelf. Which makes you smile. The two of you would spend hours in here and always ended up with two armfuls of books.

His mother was wife number two of your father’s. When he was 18 he changed his last name like you did. Neither of you wanted to be affiliated with your father by name. You changed yours to your mother’s maiden name. But Eddie made one up. He changed it to Nygma. So he could sign E. Nygma, meaning enigma. Along with his love for books he enjoys wordplay and riddles. Another thing you miss about him.

You force yourself to look away and go wait out in the car like Barsad asked. When you climb into the car you lay back in the seat and cover your face with your hands as the tears start falling again. 

When Barsad returns to the car he doesn't say anything, but you can hear him texting on his cell phone before he starts the car. You don't say anything to him either. Your mind is racing. What are the odds that you wind up in the same bookstore as your brother at the same time? Maybe he's continuing your tradition without you. You always went on Sundays and today is Sunday…..

You slowly drop your hands from your face and turn your head towards Barsad with narrowed eyes. He was pacing awful nervously in the store, constantly looking around. Like he was watching for someone. He must feel your eyes boring holes through him. He turns and looks at you. "You alright?"

Your narrowed eyes turn into an angry scowl. When you speak it's slowly and full of anger. "Just doing your job? You knew. You knew Eddie was going to be there. Why would you do that to me? Who’s fucking cruel idea was that?!”

He looks at you apologetically. “I’m sorry.” The look he’s giving you is almost identical to the one he gave you when he had to tell you to walk back up the mountain yourself after your first failed escape attempt. The look he gives you when Bane tells him to do something he doesn’t agree with or take pleasure in doing. Why the fuck would Bane taunt you with your brother? When you come to a realization you slam your hands on the dash. “Son of a bitch! He was fucking testing me wasn’t he?”

When Barsad stays silent you assume he’s going to stay tight-lipped as usual. But he surprises you when he starts talking. “Testing you to see if you would make the right choices. By not revealing yourself and not running when I gave you the keys.” You let out a humorless laugh. That’s probably who he was texting. He was telling Bane you passed your ‘tests’. Oh he's going to get an ear full from you. The rest of the drive is silent. Barsad knows you're pissed not necessarily at him, but still decides to leave you alone.

The second you pull up to another safehouse of Joker’s that you are currently staying in you jump out of the car. You stomp inside and glance around the room. “Where the fuck is Bane?!” A couple men point to the staircase with wide eyes but don’t say anything. Apparently you are one of two people that can get away with yelling at him. Talia being the other person. So you stomp up the stairs and shove the door open to the room you and Bane are sharing. 

He’s standing in front of a window looking outside. When he turns around you stand in front of him and poke your finger into his chest. “You are a fucking asshole! How dare you use my brother like that! Why did you bring me if you still didn’t fucking trust me?!”

He tries grabbing your hand that's currently poking him in the chest but you rip it away and take a couple steps back. So he crosses his arms over his chest. “When you asked for my forgiveness you said you would prove it to me. To earn my trust back. Today you have done so. I had to be sure. And you got to see with your own eyes your brother is unharmed.”

“This is bullshit….” You stop mid sentence as Bane takes his mask off. Seeing his handsome face again distracts you….which is probably what he was trying to accomplish. “Did you seriously just take your mask off to shut me up and win this argument?”

“Possibly.” 

You can tell he’s holding back a smile. “You fight dirty, you know that? That’s so not fair! You are so infuriating sometimes.”

He takes a step closer to you and opens his arms. You can’t resist and lose all willpower as you jump into his arms. When he lifts you up you wrap your legs around him and crash your lips against his. As he kisses you back he carries you over to the bed and lays down on top of you without breaking the kiss.

As the kiss gets more heated he grinds against you making you moan and want more. He’s leaning on one arm to keep his weight off you. The other slides down to your body and stops at the button on your jeans. You gasp out a ‘please’ in between kisses. Once your jeans are open he slips his hand inside your underwear and slides two large fingers through your wet folds.

You bite his bottom lip getting a growl out of him. When you release his lip he moves his lips to your neck as he slips one finger inside you. You gasp as he moves his finger in and out of you slowly. You’re pretty sure you feel him smiling against your neck, but you’re too far gone to care.

He bites and sucks marks into your skin from your neck to your shoulder. Marking you as his for everyone to see. When he adds a second finger your eyes roll back. You grind against his hand, he gets the hint and starts moving them faster. This isn’t going to take long. You were almost on the edge as soon as he started touching you. 

He moves his lips back to yours and explores your mouth with his tongue. You break the kiss when you need air. So he moves his lips back to your neck. He bites down on the junction between your neck and shoulder. You cry out as he pushes you over the edge and come around his talented fingers.

Once you come down from your high he slowly removes his fingers. You slip a hand between your bodies to reach for his pants but he stops you. You frown at him in confusion. He gives you a small smile and a soft, gentle kiss. “This was for you, I can wait. Our first time shouldn’t be in Joker’s dirty safehouse. You deserve better than that.”

You bite your lip and nod your head in understanding. Some of the things he says to you makes it hard to believe he’s also the terrifying mercenary that everyone fears. Even you feared him for a while. But it also makes you feel special that he lets his guard down with you and allows you to see the hidden layers he has beneath that mask. 

“For the record you can’t win a fight like this everytime." You try looking angry again but after what he just did it kind of washed the angry feelings from earlier away. 

"Why not? You look satisfied to me." He says with a smile on his face.

You playfully smack him on the chest, while trying and failing not to laugh at his cheesy joke. "You're still an asshole."

He shrugs his shoulders. "I've been called far worse things." 

You put both of your hands on his face and turn serious for a moment. "Don't ever use Eddie like that again. But do you trust me now?"

"I promise, never again. And yes you have earned my trust back. Now how about we find a way to secretly terrorize your father? Would that cheer you up?"

Another devious smile appears on your face. "Why yes, yes it would."


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally some smut. You're welcome. 
> 
> Enjoy the first half of the chapter because the second half is a doozy.

CHAPTER 13

Standing on the pier in the shipyard you rub your hands together like an evil mastermind. Bane hands you a remote detonator. You hover your thumb over the button and look up at him. "You're positive there's no one on board?"

He nods his head. "It's all clear. Start the fire little one."

You smile from ear to ear. "Here's a big fuck you, dad." Then you press the button on the detonator. There's a loud explosion as the fire lights up the night sky. Watching your father's largest ship burn brings you great joy. And you’re not even done yet, there’s one more stop after this. Next to be demolished will be one of his warehouses along with a fleet of his trucks. 

So you're embracing your darker side a little. But the bastard totally has it coming. And you were adamant that there couldn't be a single living soul on board. Blowing the ship up was totally your idea though. Bane suggested sinking it. You thought you might as well make a show out of it and blow it up. And why not go big and throw in the warehouse on top of it.

Barsad high fives you. "You're one of us now." 

When you hear sirens getting closer Bane wraps his arm around you. "Good work, but it's time to go."

In addition to blowing up your father's ship, warehouse, and trucks you cancelled his insurance policy. So the ship and everything else will be a complete loss. You leaked all his dirty deals online and made his company's stock prices plummet. By the end of the week he should be worth nothing and all his unsavory business associates will be furious for the details that were leaked about their illegal imports. 

Bane and Barsad were impressed by your devious plan, and both actually looked proud of you. You just wish you could see your father's face when it all hits him.

You’re revenge scheming also made Bane confess something to you. Something he did the day he took you from your father’s house. He didn’t come outside right away because he was breaking both of your father’s arms. He said he would have rather killed him, but decided against it at the last minute. When he was done confessing his little secret you couldn’t stop laughing.

Once Bane finishes the job Joker hired him for you return home. You are still tired of planes but it was a little easier this time around. You and Bane slept on the plane so when you returned home neither of you were tired. Both of you actually had something else in mind...picking up where you left off in the bedroom.

Bane is lying flat on the bed with his shirt off. You’re sitting on top of him straddling his hips as he holds your hands. You have to wait for his pain medicine to kick in before he can take the mask off. Which brings a question to the forefront of your mind. “I’m just curious. Is there nothing else you can do for the pain besides the mask?”

You hear him take a deep breath. “There’s possibly a medical procedure I could have to correct some of the areas causing the most pain. Considering a doctor made my condition worse I don’t trust them, which is why I haven’t done it. Does the mask bother you that much?”

You run your hands up his chest and put one on his face. “Of course not. Like I said I was just curious. Sometimes I just wish I could kiss you whenever I wanted without the barrier between us. But I understand it’s part of you, and on the bright side it’s like I get a piece of you to myself since you don’t take it off around anyone else.”

He moves one of his hands to your face and rubs his thumb across your bottom lip. You lean forward and run your tongue and teeth around his thumb. A low growl escapes him. “Take it off.” You smile at him as you reach for his mask. His hands go to your waist to hold you up. Slowly you pull off in case it’s too soon and still needs it you can put it back on him. When you hear no complaints you pull it all the way off revealing his beautiful smiling face. 

“There you are handsome.” Then you lean down pressing your lips to his. He pulls you flush against him as he kisses you back with fervor. His hands start roaming your body. You’re wearing only a tank top and underwear so there’s lots of bare skin for him to touch. You decide to give him a little payback for all the hickies on your neck. You break the kiss moving your lips along his jaw down to his neck and start sucking marks into his skin. He lets out a guttural moan and suddenly you’re being flipped onto your back.

He kneels in front of you reaching for the bottom of your top. He looks you in the eyes first to make sure it's okay. You bite your lip and nod your head in response. As he’s discarding your top onto the floor with the rest of your clothes you quickly take your bra off and add it to the pile. He looks down at you with hungry eyes as he admires your body. “You are so lovely and beautiful.”

Then he wedges his large frame between your thighs and kisses his way up your body. When he reaches your lips once again you can feel his hard length pressed against your core. He grinds against you and you roll your hips in response. You slip a hand between your bodies reaching for his pants. “Please.” You gasp out. He doesn’t stop you when you unbutton his pants this time and reach inside. Your eyes go wide when you feel his very large and very hard cock. You’re not sure how that’s going to fit.

He stops kissing you when he feels your body stiffen. “Do you want to stop?” You shake your head vehemently. “No of course not. Just not so sure you’re going to fit, but I’m eager to find out.” He smiles down at you and presses a soft kiss to your lips. “I’ll go slow.”

As he pulls himself up he pulls your last piece of clothing off. He quickly removes the remainder of his clothing. Your eyes immediately zero in on his rock hard length. Feeling it and seeing it are two completely different things. You hear him chuckle. “See something you like?” He says cheekily. You simply nod your head while still staring at his cock. 

He climbs back up your body and slips a hand between your thighs. You whimper in disappointment when he pushes a finger inside you rather than something else you had your eyes on. “Patience sweetheart. I don’t want to hurt you, need to open you up more first.” How he’s still able to be rational at this point you’ll never know.

Once he’s worked up to three fingers he has you on the edge. Just as you feel like you’re about to come he removes his fingers making you groan at him again. He presses a kiss to your lips to quiet your protests. You smile against his lips when you feel his glorious cock pressing at your entrance. He breaks the kiss and presses his forehead against yours. “Are you ready?” He whispers against your lips. 

“Been ready.” You pant out.

“So impatient.” He teases. “Tell me if I hurt you.” You mumble out an ‘okay’ but it turns into a gasp when he slowly pushes inside you. Even with the prepping he did it's still a tight fit. There’s a slight burn as you stretch around him. He moves incredibly slow, but you are actually thankful for it as it allows you time to adjust. Eventually he stops when he’s fully sheathed inside you. By some miracle he fit.

You hear his breathing stutter so you put your hands on his face lifting his head so you can see him. “You okay handsome?”

He nods his head slowly. “Yes. You just feel even better than I imagined. I didn’t think I would ever have you like this.” That breaks your heart a little hearing that. But considering the very rocky start you had you can understand why he thought that. You would have never guessed you would end up here either. You give him a quick kiss and smile at him. “You have me. All of me.”

He smiles back at you. “And you have me. Can I move now?” When you give him the okay he slowly pulls out and back in. He repeats the motion a couple times to make sure you’re okay. Once he’s sure he’s not hurting you he leans on one arm and the other grabs a hold of your hip. Then he starts thrusting into you at a steady pace making both of you moan.

You wrap your arms around him with your hands on top of his shoulders. He resumes kissing you. You can’t get enough of kissing each other since his mask hinders that normally. When it becomes too difficult to continue kissing you he buries his face in your neck. 

“Faster.” You gasp out. “Please go faster.” He happily obliges and picks up the speed. You feel like he’s going to split you in half but it's a good feeling. You let out a loud moan. “S’good. Don’t stop.”

When you start rolling your hips to meet his thrusts it’s his turn to moan loudly. He releases his hold on your hip and puts one arm on either side of your head caging you in. You wrap your legs around him. He starts pounding into you harder making you babble incoherently. You’re definitely going to be sore tomorrow, but it’s totally worth it. You’re both breathing heavily and covered in a fine sheen of sweat. 

“I’m close.” Are the only words you manage to get out. His response is to slip a hand between your bodies and start relentlessly rubbing your clit. You roll your hips faster until you feel yourself being pushed over the edge. You cry out and call his name as you reach your climax. He slows down working you through your orgasm. 

You look into his eyes. “Come inside me my big handsome brute.” He lets out a growl and starts pounding into you again fast and hard. It doesn’t take long before his hips and his breathing start to stutter. A deep moan escapes him as he reaches his own climax. He stills as he drops his forehead to your shoulder and you feel him pulsating inside you as he comes in you. 

When he finally catches his breath he kisses your neck. “I didn’t hurt you did I?” You run your hands down his back and feel all his scars along the way. “No it was good. You were perfect.” He lifts his head so he can see your face. He looks at you like he’s trying to read you. A smile slowly creeps its way onto his face. “No you’re perfect.” He kisses you once more and slowly pulls out of you. You force yourself not to wince as he does so. Yep you’re going to be sore tomorrow. 

He lays down on the bed and pulls you to his chest which has become your favorite spot to lay when you’re in bed together. He gently runs his fingers through your hair and you start feeling sleepy. “Do you need me to move so you can put your mask back on?”

“No you’re fine right where you are. I don’t need it just yet anyway.”

You snuggle in closer and wrap an arm around him and drift off to sleep. Bane reaches for his mask without disturbing you. When he’s sure you’re fast asleep before he puts the mask back on he presses a kiss to your forehead and quietly whispers “I love you”.

Barsad lays flat on the ground looking up at you with amusement and wide eyes as you squeal victoriously. “YES! I did it! I did it!” For the first time in all your training sessions you finally managed to knock him on his ass. Your celebration is short lived as you're soon knocked onto the ground. You huff at him in annoyance. “Seriously? Couldn’t you just let me relish in the moment just once?”

He smiles at you smugly. “You need to stay on alert. You can’t celebrate if you’re fighting someone for real.” He stands up and extends his hand to you pulling you to your feet. “But you did good. I’m proud of you. You’re getting better.” You jump up and down while also trying to hug him. “Thank you for not giving up on me.”

He hugs you back. “I wouldn’t give up on you. Let’s call it a day. We’ll see how you do tomorrow.”

After your training session with Barsad you’re feeling pretty good. You put on headphones and dance your way through the halls heading towards your room. You’re not embarrassed or shy around the men here anymore. No one dares to even look at you sideways out of fear of angering Bane. So you don’t care if you look like a fool dancing down the hallways. But that also leads to you not really paying attention. You smack right into another body which startles you, but also confuses you. It’s a woman’s body. It’s a total sausage fest around here so it’s odd running into another woman. 

You pull out your earbuds and smile sheepishly at the woman in front of you. “Sorry. Wasn’t paying attention so I didn’t see you.” She looks you up and down with a disdain expression on her face. “Obviously.” She says in a cold tone.

Okay, not a good start. It’s not like you did it on purpose. “Really sorry. Um...I’m (Y/N). Who are you?” She looks extremely annoyed by your question. “You should know who I am. You are in my home and wearing my clothes after all.”

A lightbulb goes off in your brain. “Oh….you must be Talia. Sorry about the clothes, I guess. I can give them back. Bane gave them to me when I first got here, he said you moved out. Are you moving back in….?”

“So it’s true, you’re his wife I heard rumors about. I must say I am rather disappointed. And my business here is certainly none of yours. Learn your place.” Then brushes past you continuing on down the hallway. 

What the hell is up her ass? And what did she mean by rumors she heard about you? You were having such a good day and she totally knocked you down a few pegs. You walk back to your room replaying the confusing encounter in your mind. She took off so fast you couldn’t even correct her about the whole wife thing. You’re not actually his wife. You haven’t exactly labeled what your relationship is, but girlfriend would be more appropriate. 

Even if they did have a falling out she’s still an important person to Bane so you don’t want her to hate you, and you’ve clearly started off on the wrong foot already. When you get back to your room Bane is there waiting for you. He sees the sullen look on your face when you walk into the room. 

“What’s wrong? Did your training not go well?”

Ugh you were so excited to tell him too. Now you’ve lost the excitement you had earlier. “No it went great actually. I knocked Barsad on his ass finally.” You say in an unhappy tone. Bane stands in front of you gripping your chin gently and tilting your head up so you look at him. “Why do you not sound pleased about your progress?”

“It’s not that. I was really excited. But I’m guessing you don’t know Talia is back? And I’m pretty sure she hates me already. I accidentally bumped into her and I’m wearing her clothes. Basically the short conversation went terribly.”

He gets an unreadable expression on his face. You’ve been getting pretty good at reading his eyes, but the look he has now you’re not sure what to make of it. “Don’t worry about her. I’ll take care of it.”

You don’t see Bane for the rest of the day. You assume he’s busy catching up or making amends with his old friend. That night you crawl into bed alone. Which happens sometimes, you don’t always go to bed together at the same time. He comes to bed very late in the night and leaves very early in the morning before you even wake up. So you never had a chance to ask what happened. When you do wake up cold and alone it puts you in a gloomy mood.

You roll out of bed and get your morning started with your regular routine. You’ll find him eventually and figure out what’s going on. When you meet Barsad for your morning training he sees you’re frowning instead of smiling. “Why the frown?”

You let out an exaggerated sigh. “Have you seen Bane?” He gives you a confused look. “You see him before I do in the mornings.” From there you proceed to tell him about your encounter with Talia and then Bane’s reaction and not getting to talk to him. You also thought you had gotten pretty good at reading Barsad. He tries keeping neutral expressions when he’s trying to be tight lipped but you’ve come to notice some of his tells. But just like last night with Bane you’re coming up short again. You aren’t sure how to interpret the blank look on his face. 

He shakes his head. You’re not sure if its at you or himself. “I didn’t know Talia was back. He’ll turn up soon. So let’s get started with your training.”

You decide to focus on the task at hand and deal with the other crap later. Barsad knocks you down several times as per usual. But you’re determined so eventually you knock him on his ass then shove him flat on his back pining his hands above his head. You look down at him smiling triumphantly. It's the first time you’ve actually smiled today. “Can I celebrate this time?”

He rolls his eyes jokingly. “Sure, why not.”

Just as you release his hands and wave yours in the air excitedly a voice bursts your bubble again. “That was pathetic and weak. He is doing you no favors by going easy on you. I’ll show you how it’s done.” Barsad slides you to the side and jumps up to his feet standing in front of you. “Talia no. She is only doing this so she can protect herself. She’s not part of the league.”

She narrows her eyes. “Only league members should be here.” She says with venom in her voice. The next voice you hear brings you relief. “Talia leave her be.” Barsad reaches for you and pulls you up off the ground. As Bane comes into view he extends his own hand which you take without hesitation. He silently pulls you out of the room and leads you back to your shared bedroom but doesn’t say a word the whole way. 

When you enter your bedroom you cross your arms over your chest. “What’s going on?” Bane sits down on the bed and pulls you onto his lap. He lets out an exasperated sigh. “Ra’s Al Ghul had a rule. Only league members could live here and know league business. She’s displeased I broke her father’s rule by bringing you here. You need not worry about it. She’s angry with me not you.”

You bite your lip as you look him in the eyes. His eyes have finally softened, the way he normally looks at you. “But you’re in charge now. Shouldn’t it be your rules?”

“The league is rightfully hers, she is Ra’s Al Ghul’s only heir. She chose to give me control of the league. So in her eyes her father’s rules should still be followed.”

“So is she back permanently? Do I need to steer clear of her?”

He puts both of his hands on your face. He once again has an unreadable expression. “She’s back but for how long I don’t know. And I will handle her, so you may go about as you normally would.” You kiss his cheek and then wrap your arms around him. “Okay handsome.”

Two weeks go by and you’re confused and disheartened. You hardly see Bane during the day anymore. When you do he’s short with you and doesn’t show you any affection. When you’re together in your room at night he’s fine. He has normal conversations with you, jokes with you, and is affectionate. You haven’t said anything about it yet. You are assuming Talia being back has thrown him for a loop and wanted to give him some time. Maybe they’re still trying to work out their differences. He never actually told you what their falling out was about and to be fair you never asked him either.

Barsad has been trying to keep you busy during the day. While also keeping you away from Talia. He hasn’t said as much, but it seems like an obvious assumption. You don’t bother prying Barsad with questions because you know he won’t answer you. One morning instead of training he tells you to back a bag. Apparently they’ve been hired to go somewhere and do something, you aren’t given any details. 

It’s Barsad that takes you down the mountain and stays with you on the plane. You only caught a glimpse of Bane when he got on the plane with Talia. This is seriously getting frustrating. Everything was fine until she showed up. You nudge Barsad with your elbow. He just lifts an eyebrow at you in response. “Have I done something wrong?”

He looks taken back by your question. “Of course not. What makes you think that?”

You scoff at him. “Bane’s acting off and making you babysit me. And don’t you dare deny it.”

He opens and closes his mouth a couple times as he tries to find the right words. You just stare at him with narrowed eyes. He wipes a hand down his face and sighs. “I promise you’ve done nothing wrong. Talia is just being a handful that’s all. And I remember what happened the last time you were left completely alone so I’m keeping you company.”

You know he’s leaving out details, but at least he gave you something. That’s the most you’ll get out of him so you just accept his answer for now. When you arrive at the unknown destination you’re taken to a large house. It’s far nicer than any of the safehouses of Joker’s you stayed at. Inside the house you finally get five minutes alone with Bane. He enters the room you're going to be sharing, but you’re in a sour mood by this point. 

“To what do I owe the pleasure of finally being graced with your presence?” You say in a voice full of sarcasm.

He gives you an apologetic look and wraps his big arms around you pulling you in a tight embrace. He rests his chin, or rather the bottom of his mask, gently on top of your head. Barsad must have said something to him. “I’m sorry little one. I will make it up to you tonight, and I’ll take the mask off. Alright?”

You hug him back happy to be in his arms and nod your head against his chest. “That’s a good start I suppose.”

After that he leaves with Talia. He said he didn’t need you to come along just yet. Once again you are left with Barsad and still given no details about the reason you're here or even where you are. When it starts to get late and you can’t keep your eyes open you head to bed. A few hours later you wake when you hear the sound of car doors shutting. A smile creeps onto your face knowing that Bane is back and he promised to take the mask off. That always leads to something fun. 

When a half hour goes by and there’s still no sign of him you get annoyed and decide to go search for him. He’s nowhere on the top floor that you are currently staying on so you check the main level. Finally you hear the deep sounds of his voice but you can’t make out what’s being said. So you follow the sounds until you reach a hallway that has an office. As you get closer to the door you can see a table next to the door with Bane’s mask sitting on it. You wonder how long he’s had it off for and why he hasn’t come up to your room yet. 

When you look inside the office your heart instantly shatters into a million pieces. Talia is sitting in Bane’s lap and they’re kissing. Well that actually explains a lot, his behavior recently. Not needing to see anymore you go back the way you came. But your vision is clouded as the tears start to fall. He certainly had you fooled. That was honestly the last thing you expected to see. 

When you get back to your room you choke back your sobs and quickly redress. If Bane wants her he can have her. But you’re not going to stay to have your heart stomped on more. He keeps cash in his overnight bag so you take what you need. Then you grab your bag and sneak out of the house into the darkness with a steady stream of tears still dripping down your face. You don’t know where you're going, but you’re going to get as far away from him as possible.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know. I know. Don't hate me. That hurt to write it too. But you shouldn't be surprised if you read the tags.


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kind of a short chapter to tie you over because of the cliffhanger while I work on the next chapter.
> 
> Time for a little Bruce Wayne. So there's no Bane in this chapter. Yikes, Sorry.

CHAPTER 14

With your head leaning against the bus window you numbly watch the scenery outside. Numbly because you’ve cried your heart out and can’t possibly muster up any more tears. Absentmindedly you play with the ring hanging from the chain around your neck. It's the ring Bane had given back to you. You took off in such a hurry you forgot you still had it on. When you realize what you're doing you quickly tuck the ring and necklace back inside your sweater.

After you snuck out you caught a train. Once you got on the train and figured out where you were you realized you’re about a day's drive from Gotham. After the train you caught a bus. You've been careful to keep your face covered with your hooded sweater and avoid surveillance cameras. You did pay attention to some of the stuff being taught to the league members while you were in Nanda Parbat. Hopefully no one will come looking for you this time, but better safe than sorry.

You could technically go around Gotham and keep heading west but you figured you may as well check on your brother as you pass through. You obviously won’t talk to him, but you can check in on him without him knowing. 

After the last time you saw him Barsad told you all the information they gathered about him. They surveilled him for a while. That's how they knew he would be at the bookstore. He goes every Sunday just like you used to together. 

Eddie is working for the medical examiner's office in Gotham. It’s a little funny, you figured out a way to pay for his medical school and he chooses to be a medical doctor that doesn’t have to interact with patients. You can’t say you’re surprised though. Much like you he’s awkward around people and never knows the right thing to say. Or people just don’t get his personality. He likes to talk in riddles, you find it endearing, but other people not so much.

As you cross one of the many bridges to get into Gotham you feel a small sense of relief. Bane once told you he doesn’t do business inside the city because of too much interference. So you’d be less likely to run into him in Gotham. 

You knew when he was talking about interference he was referring to the guy running around calling himself Batman. Which you don’t quite understand. Bane could probably snap the guy in half, but you never questioned him on the subject. Apparently there were a lot of things you should have questioned him further on. You shake your head at yourself. Pull yourself together and stop thinking about him dammit.

When you lived in Gotham Batman wasn’t around. He didn’t emerge until a few years ago. Despite his love for theatrics you do have to hand it to him he has cleaned up the city a lot. At least that’s what you heard on the news when you still had a TV. 

It’s dark outside when you get off the bus a few blocks away from the medical examiner's office. As you’re walking you notice there’s a lot of police traffic which you would rather avoid. When you get to the address you looked up you curse to yourself. Of course it would be attached to the fucking GCPD building. Can nothing go right for you?

You try to casually pass by the police building and glance around hoping maybe to get a glimpse of Eddie but no sign of him. So you keep walking until you reach an alleyway that gives you a good view to the entrance but also keeps you hidden in the shadows. This is probably a dumb idea, but seeing him will maybe help keep your mind off other things or people you are trying to not think about. 

You still have yet to decide where you’re going to go or what you’re going to do after this. One step at a time is what you keep telling yourself. After about an hour for the first time in what feels like ages a small smile appears on your face. Eddie comes walking out of the building with a pretty girl. He’s animatedly talking to her about something. He has a book tucked under his arm as he tries talking with his hands. She’s smiling at him listening intently. They are so adorable. He’s never been great with women, again because of his different personality. He just needed to find the right girl that will see him for how special he is. Just like you and…..

You internally scold yourself. Nope, not going there. Get him out of your head. You put your scolding on hold to watch your brother for a moment longer until you can’t see him anymore. Once he’s gone you lean against the wall and take a deep breath. Okay, you did what you came here to do. Eddie looks to be doing fine. Now what?

First you decide to find a bus to get you out of the city. You’ll just keep heading further west for now. You turn down the alley walking the opposite way you came, going away from the police station. The already dim lighting in the dark alley temporarily gets blocked as something drops down from the top of the building. By the time you see it's falling towards you it's too late. As you turn to run you twist your ankle and get knocked to the ground hard. The wind gets knocked out of you and pain shoots through your leg. As you’re gasping for air two hands grip the front of your sweater. Looming above you is none other than Batman himself.

“Who are you and what are you doing lurking in the shadows?” He growls out at you in a deep voice. 

After all that training with Barsad an occasion arises when you need it and you fail to act. Once you catch your breath and your eyes adjust you make eye contact with the man hovering above you. You know those eyes. You used to know them very well a long time ago. “Bruce?”

His eyes go wide and he pulls your hood off so he can see your face. “(Y/N)? I...you’re supposed to be dead.”

“Yeah well you’re dressed like a bat. No one’s perfect.” He extends his gloved hand to pull you up. You grab his hand, but make the mistake of putting your weight on the ankle you twisted. As you cry out in pain you fall back towards the ground but Bruce catches you just in time. “You might have broken your ankle, we should get you to the hospital.”

“NO! He’ll find me! No hospitals.”

“Who’s going to find you?”

You groan both in pain and annoyance. You didn’t mean to say that. You just panicked and blurted it out. “It doesn’t matter. But I’m not going to a hospital.” He sighs as he scoops you up in his arms. “Still stubborn as ever I see. I’ll take you back to Wayne Manor I suppose. Alfred has experience with broken bones.”

“Yep. Now can you stop using the Batman voice? It’s weird since I know who you are. Speaking of which I have a lot of questions about this whole bat thing.”

“Well I have a lot of questions about the whole you being alive thing.” He comes to a stop and you turn your head to see why. He stopped in front of the well known ‘batmobile’. Well this is certainly not how you foresaw this day going. Running into Batman and finding out Batman is in fact your first boyfriend. 

When your parents divorced your mother moved with you to Gotham and your father had to pay for your private schooling. Which is how you met Bruce. You met in elementary school. He was your boyfriend through middle school and part of high school up until you had to move away after your mother died. He didn’t want to break up, but you quickly pointed out it wasn’t logical for 14 year olds to maintain a long distance relationship. You both tried keeping in touch but the calls and letters became less and less until eventually they just stopped.

Bruce gently sets you in his….vehicle. Then he goes around and climbs in on the other side. There’s a heavy silence for a few minutes. Both of you have your own secrets you’re hiding. But you obviously busted him right away on his biggest one.

He takes the mask off finally and clears his throat awkwardly. You give him a small smile that doesn’t quite reach your eyes. “Look at you all grown up. You look a lot like your father now.”

He gives you a small smile in return, but doesn’t comment on what you just said. He never did like talking about his parents after they died. “So why were you hiding in the alley?”

You turn your head away from him and look out the window. Thankfully it's tinted so no one can see inside. “I was watching Eddie. I miss him and just wanted to make sure he was okay.”

“So you haven’t told him you’re very much alive? We buried you or thought we did. I paid for the funeral service to help Eddie out. He was in a really bad place for a while after he was told you died. Who did we bury?”

You whip your head quickly in his direction. “No he doesn’t know I’m alive and you can’t tell him. It’s the only way I can keep him safe. And I have no idea who you buried.”

“(Y/N) what’s going on? Your father told Eddie you fell head over heels in love with some guy and just took off without a word. Then the next thing we hear is you died in a plane crash.”

You let out a humorless laugh. Oh that son of a bitch. Seriously that’s what he told people? Of course he wouldn’t admit to being the piece of shit that he really is and trading his own daughter to pay off mercenaries. You suppose you did fall head over heels in love but that came way later and then bit you in the ass while crushing your heart in the process. 

Just when you thought you had no tears left to cry you feel your eyes start to water.

When you don’t answer him, Bruce tries again. “(Y/N) come on talk to me. Was there a guy? Did he hurt you? Is that who you’re hiding from?”

“I don’t want to talk about it Bruce.”

“(Y/N)...”

“JUST DROP IT!” You snap at him.You don’t want to talk about...him. Bruce looks taken back by your outburst. You may be stubborn and sarcastic, but you don’t normally yell at people. He doesn’t pry anymore after that. 

You try controlling your breathing and clearing your head so you don’t start sobbing again. 

After some more awkward silence he randomly gives you a mischievous smile right before he drives through a waterfall. But when you’re not phased by it he frowns. You’ve been pushed and forced to jump out of airplanes. Driving through a waterfall into a cave is child’s play in comparison. “You’re not impressed?”

“It’s a very lovely waterfall that accentuates your manly batcave. Do you feel validated now? Or do you need a little more of an ego boost?”

That gets a laugh out of him. “There’s the sarcastic girl I’m so fond of. I wouldn’t say no to the ego boost though. Maybe compliment my awesome batsuit.” That gets you to crack a tiny smile, which is what he was hoping for.

When he lifts you up to carry you inside you hear Alfred’s voice. “Master Wayne? Back so soon?” His eyes go wide when he sees you and he points a finger in your direction. “How in the world? She’s supposed to be…”

Bruce cuts him off. “Dead, ya not so much.”

You give Alfred a hesitant smile and a small wave. “Surprise?"


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I got this chapter done sooner than I expected.
> 
> Still no Bane, but I swear he'll be back in the next chapter.

CHAPTER 15

Hobbling around Wayne Manor in crutches is easier said than done. The mansion is huge with lots of stairs. You did in fact fracture your ankle. Alfred ended up calling Lucius Fox. He works at Wayne Enterprises and supplies Bruce with all of his neat gadgets and toys. He knows Bruce is Batman so he said you could trust him to keep you being alive a secret. Lucius brought something to scan your ankle and then Alfred put it in a cast. Apparently he’s done that for Bruce several times. 

You’ve been there a couple days. You only agreed to stay if Bruce and Alfred swore not to tell anyone you were there. And you said you would only stay until you could walk on your ankle again. So you and Bruce have been tiptoeing around the giant elephants in the room. Even though you are dying to ask him questions about the whole Batman thing, you haven’t asked him any more since you refuse to talk about where you have been and what happened to you. 

He’s not the same boy you grew up with, and he probably thinks the same thing about you. Both of you have changed. You can see parts of him still there. But you can tell he carries a lot of weight on his shoulders. He’s more hardened and serious now. He was shy, quiet, and very sweet when you first met him. Alfred though, he’s still the same wonderful and loyal old man you remember. 

"Will you just let me help you?" Bruce huffs as he watches you trying to get down the staircase.

"Nope." That's been your response the last five times he's asked that question.

He crosses his arms over his chest. He's standing at the bottom of the stairs. "I don't remember you being this stubborn when we were younger."

"Ya well, things get better with age right? I've just improved my stubbornness to the next level. And don’t you have anything better to do than fuss over me? Shouldn’t you be out making supermodels swoon over you or something?" You know he just feels bad because he technically caused your ankle fracture. You keep telling him you’re not mad at him or blaming him for it, but he still feels guilty.

He starts laughing at your words. “Swoon? Did you really just say swoon? You know that whole playboy, ladies man thing is just an act right? It’s not really me. I have to play the part of the Bruce Wayne everyone thinks I am so they don’t find out who I truly am.”

You finally reach the bottom of the stairs feeling a little short of breath, but you made it on your own. You look at Bruce thoughtfully. “That sounds exhausting being two different people.”

He nods his head in agreement. “Yes sometimes it is.” He glances at his watch. “Can we go eat now? Dinner’s probably cold since you took an hour to get down the stairs because you refused my help.”

You roll your eyes as you brush past him with your crutches. “I did not take an hour. Stop exaggerating. It was 30 minutes tops.” When you enter the large dining room you see the room is set up with a beautiful candle light dinner. Oh no, you are not in the mood for this. You slowly turn your head towards Bruce with a raised eyebrow.

He smiles at you sheepishly. “I just wanted to have a nice dinner with you and to talk. That’s all.” Alfred suddenly appears and pulls a chair out for you. He helps you sit down and takes your crutches leaning them against the wall behind you. “Thank you Alfred. How about you join us for dinner? There’s more than enough here.” You give him a pleading look. He’s always been Bruce’s voice of reason and keeps him in check. You don’t want to start arguing with Bruce again over the things you refuse to talk about nor do you want to have a romantic dinner. It is far too soon to even think about something like that.

Alfred smiles and pats you on the shoulder. “Not this time dear. You’ll be just fine, I promise.” He promptly leaves after that and Bruce sits down in the chair across from you. You open your mouth to protest this whole thing but he shushes you before you can get a word out. “Just hear me out please. I’m going to tell you my story. The story that only Alfred knows. Then maybe, just maybe in return you can tell me something. But I’m not going to force you. I’ll leave it up to you after you hear what I have to say. Alright?”

Your shoulders slump and you let out a defeated sigh. “Fine.”

Bruce’s face lights up as he smiles triumphantly. He always did have a great smile, he looks more handsome that way. You internally sigh at yourself. You’re not checking him out or anything, it’s just simply an observation. Right? He must notice that you mentally checked out because he clears his throat to get your attention.

“So I’m sure you remember how hard the death of my parents was for me right?”

Your face softens and you nod your head. “Of course I do. I tried being there for you as much as I could.”

He gives you a sad smile in return. “I know you did. You were really my only friend at the time besides Alfred. But what I’m trying to explain is as I got older the guilt I felt over my parents dying started turning in to anger. They were murdered in a dirty alleyway because I got scared and wanted to leave the theater early. I was very angry and lost by the time I became an adult. I never wanted to feel defenceless again like I did that night so I guess you could say I was obsessed with trying to understand the criminal mind. I dropped out of college and traveled around the world. I did some things I’m not entirely proud of, and ended up in a prison in China. I was always getting into fights with the other inmates, using them as practice basically.”

Your eyes go wide. “Bruce Wayne went to jail…..in China? Seriously? I can’t picture you in a jail or prison of any kind.”

He chuckles at you. “Well it really happened. One day I got in a fight with 6 or 7 men at the same time. The guards threw me in solitary confinement. But there was a man there waiting for me, and he even knew who I was. He said he could show me another way, offer me another path to take. I thought he was insane at first but the more he talked the more I could tell he was actually being genuine and understood me. He told me his name was Ducard at first because like me he was keeping his true identity a secret. He led a group of men that call themselves the League of Shadows and his real name was Ra’s Al Ghul….”

As he said that last sentence you were taking a drink of your water. You spray some of it out and start coughing and choking. He goes to get up to help you but you put a hand up. “I’m fine.” You squeak out. 

Oh for fuck sake! Seriously what are the fucking odds of that? Is that why Bane stays out of Gotham? They know each other? But the league is assassins and mercenaries; they kill people. Batman...Bruce has never killed anyone that you know of at least. 

You take a deep breath and put a hand on your chest. “Sorry, went down the wrong pipe. I’m still listening. Please continue.” You try sounding casual even though inside your are freaking the fuck out.

He looks at you hesitantly for a moment but decides to go on with his story. “So Ra’s Al Ghul took me in and trained me. He taught me everything he knows, I looked up to him...for a while at least. When it came time to initiate me into the league officially they wanted me to kill a man from a nearby village who was accused of stealing his neighbor’s land by murdering him. Even if the man was a killer I couldn’t do it. That’s not justice to me. I was basically black listed after that, they kicked me out. After 7 years of traveling I returned to Gotham. The city was overrun with criminals and corrupt cops. Gotham was in dire need of help. And that’s when I created Batman. I chose a bat because I feared them and wanted to overcome my fear. It was just meant to be a symbol or an idea. Not a man acting as a vigilante. I don’t use guns and I’ve never killed anyone. I just deliver them to the police and with the help of Jim Gordon he cleaned up the GCPD overtime.”

“Why do I sense a ‘but’ coming?” You say half teasingly 

He smirks at you. “Smart girl. Everything was overall getting better. But Ra’s Al Ghul showed up in my city. See he believed that criminals were all evil and must be served justice. And when a city becomes too corrupt or beyond saving that it has to be destroyed. Wipe the slate clean so to speak. He was going to wipe Gotham off the map. In the end I stopped him and the league. Ra’s Al Ghul died in the process though. We fought on a train and he died when it crashed, I jumped out just in time. After that things quieted down here. Criminals still pop up to challenge Batman from time to time. So I go out at night just to remind them I’m still here and watching. What started as an idea grew into something more. I feel like by turning Gotham back to its former glory it made my parents deaths not be in vain.”

You just stare at Bruce as a million thoughts run through your mind. There’s so many questions you want to ask him. Especially about the league, but you don’t want to allude to knowing who they are. He’s partially responsible for the death of Ra’s Al Ghul. Bane never told you any of this. What the fuck. “Wow Bruce. I’m not sure what to say. That's quite a story. What happened to this shadow league after you stopped them?”

He shrugs his shoulders. “I’m not sure. Some were captured but many got away. I haven’t heard anything about them since then. I assumed without their leader they dismantled.”

Boy oh boy is he wrong about that. But you certainly aren’t going to tell him so. He must not know about that bitch Talia. Bruce leans forward with his elbows on the table looking at you expectantly. He wants you to tell him something. You could tell him what a piece of shit your father is without naming the person or people you ran away from. 

You lean back in the chair and cross your arms over your chest. “I’m going to need something stronger than water if we’re going to do this.” Bruce jumps up out of his seat. “Anything you want sweetheart. Let’s take this to the living room where it’s more comfortable.” 

You choose to ignore the sweetheart comment, but do follow him into the living room where there’s a fire going in the fireplace. Which instantly makes you feel sad. It reminds you of the one you had in your room. Nope not your room, never really was apparently. You quickly chug down the glass of scotch he hands you. He raises an eyebrow at you. “Slow it down there a little, this stuff is strong.”

You hand the glass back to him. “Good, fill it back up.” He gives you an amused look as he fills it back up. Then he sits down on the loveseat next to you after he hands you the half full glass. “Okay I’m all ears.”

This time you take a couple sips instead of guzzling it all down while mentally giving yourself a little pep talk. You take one last deep breath before you make eye contact with Bruce who’s patiently waiting. “Did Eddie ever tell you how he was able to afford medical school?”

Bruce gives you a confused look. Obviously this isn’t where he thought your story would start. “No it never really came up. He just mentioned once that you helped him.”

“Well before my wonderful father went to prison I emptied one of his offshore bank accounts. I used all of it to pay for his entire schooling and gave him enough to live off so he wouldn’t have to work while going to school. I didn’t lie to him, I told him exactly where it came from. He was hesitant at first, but our father never did anything for us. So I told Eddie it was retribution for his shitty parenting. So in the end he accepted it, but I never told him what happened after our father got out of prison. That asshole blackmailed me. He knew I took the money. And it was stolen money to begin with. He also had proof I knew of some of his illegal activities. So in order for him to leave Eddie alone and me stay out of prison he made me work for him. He only wanted me for my ‘special’ computer skills. So basically I had to hack into things whenever he summoned me for it.”

Bruce is staring at you with wide eyes. “I knew your dad was an ass, but I didn’t know he was that bad.”

That makes you laugh almost hysterically. You shake your head at him as you’re laughing. “Oh boy you have no idea. That was nothing really. It gets so much worse. So he desperately wanted to rebuild his empire to be back on the top again. He hired some…..men to take out his competition. I had to assist when they needed my computer skills. When they successfully took out his competition and the bill came due he couldn’t pay them. He only had half the amount they agreed on. He offered me up as payment to make up the difference.”

The look on Bruce’s face is almost hilarious. He goes from looking shocked to appalled with wide eyes and mouth agape. “Seriously? You’re serious? Not messing with me?” 

You shake your head no. “I shit you not my friend. It’s totally true. So I didn’t fall head over heels in love with some guy and ride off into the sunset. He handed me over to them like a piece of property and they took me away.”

He opens and closes his mouth several times. He has so many questions trying to spill out at once. “Then what happened? I’m guessing you got away since you’re here. Did they hurt you?”

Only mentally and psychologically. Well technically physically that one time you had to walk back up the mountain. A broken heart kind of falls into all three of those categories too. But you aren’t going to tell him any of that. “They didn’t do anything horrible to me like I’m sure you’re thinking. They wanted me to work for them like my father did. I escaped a total of three times. This here being the third time obviously. But the second time just totally snowballed on me when I thought I was free and clear. The CIA captured me as I was running through whatever city we were in at the time. They wanted to question me about the men I was with. So that plane crash I “died” in was them rescuing me from the CIA. They hijacked the plane and pulled me out into another plane. They left a body of an already dead woman on board. I don’t know who she was or what happened. I honestly never asked. I was afraid to ask. But they faked my death so the CIA would stop looking for me and wouldn’t harm Eddie. That’s why I’m staying away from him. If the wrong people find out I’m alive they could hurt Eddie to get to me.”

Bruce has a deep frown on his face. “I don’t understand. Why wouldn’t you want to expose the men that kidnapped you and held you hostage? Who were these men?”

You empty your second glass of scotch before answering him. “It doesn’t matter and it’s complicated. This is far more than I wanted to tell you to begin with. That’s all I’m going to tell you about them. So please just let it go now.”

He locks eyes with you. He obviously doesn’t want to drop it, and has so many unanswered questions. He eventually relents and gives you a slight nod. “I don’t feel so bad for your father going bankrupt now.” He mutters.

That devious smile appears on your face again. He cocks his head to the side with a frown as he looks at you. Then you see a lightbulb go off in his mind. “You did that didn’t you?” You can’t wipe the smile off your face. “The fucker had it coming.” 

He shakes his head as he laughs. “I definitely can’t argue with that. Well I’m glad you found some way to pay him back then.” He doesn’t bring up the sunken ship or the demolished warehouse. So you don’t mention it either. That will just raise more questions about your time away. 

A thought suddenly pops into your head. “You said you helped Eddie with my funeral service when you brought it up before. Why was it Eddie and not my father?”

Bruce scoffs. “Well he was trying to be cheap about it for one. But Eddie didn’t want him to have anything to do with it. He blamed your father for you running off. He was insistent that he had something to do with it, and said you would never just leave without telling him. Which turns out he was right all along.”

You lay your head back on the couch and sigh. Poor Eddie. You can only imagine how you would feel had it been the other way around. If Eddie just disappeared without a word. You would be a mess. You feel even more horrible about hiding from him now, but it’s for his own good. At least that’s what you keep telling yourself.

After that you move on to much lighter topics. Mostly reminiscing about your childhood years together and then your early teenage years. “Remember the first time I kissed you when we were what, like 12?” Bruce says playfully. 

You quirk an eyebrow at him. “Now if my memory serves me right, which I know it does. It was me that kissed you first. You kept chickening out and I got sick of it and shoved you against the tree and kissed you. Then of course Alfred caught us and we were horrified.”

He starts laughing and his cheeks turn pink from embarrassment reminding you of the young Bruce you used to know. “Okay you got me. I guess I should rectify that ruined moment.” Before you comprehend what he’s insinuating or even react he cups your cheek with one hand and leans in pressing his lips to yours. It's a soft and gentle kiss. When he breaks the kiss he’s smiling at you while you just stare at him blankly. 

Once your brain reboots you slide off the couch and grab your crutches. “Thanks for tonight. But I’m feeling tired. I think I’m going to head to bed.”

Bruce’s face falls. “(Y/N) wait. I’m sorry. Don’t run off...or I guess hobble off.”

You’re already making a surprisingly swift getaway. “It’s fine Bruce. I’ve just had a lot happen in a short amount of time. Nothing personal.” Before he can reply you’re already out of the room. Thankfully he doesn’t chase after you. When you get back to the room you are currently staying in you collapse onto the bed and burst into tears.

Bruce means well, but everything about what just happened feels wrong. His hands on your face don’t feel like the big strong hands you want touching you. His lips don’t feel like the ones you want kissing you. He’s not the one you want. But you’re not the one Bane wants either. Eventually you cry yourself to sleep that night and your mind torments you with dreams of a handsome face you desperately miss. 

The next morning you planned to sleep the day away. However Alfred wouldn’t stand for that. He eventually wore you down and got you to crawl out of bed. You just don’t have it in you to be mean to that man. Not really caring about impressing anyone you stay in your sleep clothes but do at least brush your hair so you’re not a complete mess. You slowly make the long and exhausting trip down the stairs. Why do they not have any bedrooms on the main floor? That would be a lot more convenient. 

As you sleepily enter the dining room for the breakfast Alfred made you get up for you don’t notice until it’s too late that Bruce isn’t alone. Shocked brown eyes are looking at you. After you glare at Bruce and make a mental note to chew him out later you address the person staring at you.

“Um...Hi Eddie.”


	16. Chapter 16

CHAPTER 16

Shocked and surprised brown eyes are locked onto yours. His mouth opens but no words come out. You're feeling at a loss for words yourself because he shouldn't be here.

"Um...Hi Eddie."

He jumps up out of his seat so quickly it tips over. He strides over to you pulling you into a bone crushing hug and your crutches fall to the floor in the process. 

The moment you hug him back you start sobbing uncontrollably against his chest. "I'm so sorry Eddie." You gasp out between sobs.

You can feel his body shaking and immediately know he's crying too. So you hug him tighter.

After a couple minutes he gently pulls your face away from his chest so he can see you. His eyes are red rimmed underneath his glasses and face tear stained. "Please don't hate me Eddie. I'm so sorry."

He gives you a watery smile. "What three words are said too much, meant by few, wanted by all?"

You smile back at him with tears still falling from your eyes. "I love you too."

"Everyone thought I went mad. But I knew things weren't adding up. I knew you couldn't really be gone. Where have you been?"

Your face falls. You don't want to tell him about what you've been through over these last several months. But you also can't lie to him. You never lie to him. 

As your leg starts to cramp and wobble you realize you're still standing on one foot. Eddie seems to finally notice and quickly picks up your crutches to help you. "What happened to your ankle?"

"Batman fell on me." You say with a hint of amusement in your voice. Once he's sure you're holding yourself up with the crutches he turns and looks at Bruce with a scowl. "You broke my sister's ankle? What is wrong with you?"

Your eyes go wide and then it's your turn to scowl at Bruce. "He knows? You didn't tell me that. What the hell is wrong with you?"

Bruce puts his hands up to placate both of you. "Yes, he's just as perceptive as you. I forgot to mention that one small detail. And Eddie I didn't do it on purpose. She was skulking around in a dark alley spying on you. It was an accident."

You scoff at him. "I was not skulking."

Your brother whips back around facing you with sad eyes. "You were watching me? Why didn't you come to me sooner?"

Before you answer him you narrow your eyes at Bruce again as a sigh escapes you. "I missed you and wanted to make sure you were okay. I know I have a lot to tell you. Alone. Without people that can't keep their promises or their mouth shut." You grit out the last part as you glare daggers at Bruce.

He opens his mouth probably to defend his actions but you shush him. "Nope. I don't want to hear it. I will have words with you later. My brother comes first. I'm going outside to talk to him and if I see you eavesdropping there will be hell to pay. Got it?"

He puts his hands up again like he’s surrendering. “Loud and clear.” You lead Eddie through the kitchen and outside to the garden area. He takes your crutches and helps you sit down on the bench that sits near the center of the garden. When he sits down next to you, you lay your head against his shoulder.

When you don’t say anything right away he breaks the silence. “Until I am measured I am not known, Yet how you miss me when I have flown. What am I?” 

You chuckle at him. “Time. Yes I know you’ll stay here and listen no matter how much time it takes.” You lean your head back so you can see his face. “I missed hearing your riddles. Feels like forever since I last heard one from you.”

“You’re the only person that likes hearing them. Everyone else gets annoyed or thinks I’m strange.”

“Hey, you’re not strange. You are unique. What about that pretty girl I saw you talking to a couple days ago? She looked like she was hanging on your every word.”

His cheeks turn pink and a shy smile appears on his face. “You saw her? I really like her, but I don’t think she likes my riddles either. She’s just being nice, and she has a boyfriend.”

“If she doesn’t see you for how special you are then it's her loss.”

After a couple beats of silence you stop procrastinating. You tell him everything, starting from when your father blackmailed you. Even all the details about your so called relationship with Bane, and everything that happened up until Bruce caught you watching him from the shadows of the dark alley. When you finish telling him your story you brace yourself for his reaction.

He wraps his arm around your shoulders. “I didn’t think it was physically possible for me to hate dad more than I already did, but here we are. I knew he had to have done something. Why didn’t you tell me what he was doing? I would have given the money back. This all happened because of me.”

You quickly sit upright and put your hands on his face. “Don’t you dare say that. None of what happened is your fault. I made my own choices. I’ve always chosen to protect you, and I would make the same choices again. Besides it wasn’t bad the whole time. It was good for a while. And I paid dad back in my own way.”

A small smile tugs at the corner of his mouth. “I can’t believe you blew up his ship. I am very proud of you though. Brings me joy to see him bankrupt again. You know wife number four left him?” 

“I didn’t but can’t say I’m surprised. I told him the child bride wasn’t with him for his non existent good looks and charming personality.”

Eddie laughs and he pulls you in for a hug. “Thank you for everything you’ve done for me. Will you come stay with me please? Let me protect you for once. I don’t want you to leave.”

“I’ll think about it. I’m afraid they’re going to come looking for me. Or the CIA or whoever will find out I’m still alive.”

He releases his hold on you but keeps an arm over your shoulder. “You can touch me. You can break me. You should win me if you want to be mine. What am I?”

You feel your eyes trying to water. “Yes Bane won my heart and then he broke it. But seeing you again is helping fix it.” He kisses your temple. “Speaking of fixing, I should check your ankle.”

“Right my little brother is a doctor now. Dr. Nygma. Who chose to be a medical examiner after all that schooling.” You say teasingly.

“I do like the sound of Dr. Nygma, but I’m not a doctor yet. I’m doing my internship with the medical examiner’s office. The dead can’t judge me and it’s interesting work.”

As you and Eddie sit outside talking for what feels like hours you keep getting a feeling of being watched. You glance around occasionally. If you see Bruce you’re going to smack him with one of your crutches. But you never see him or anyone around. So you just chalk it up to being paranoid.

Barsad makes his way through the twists and turns of the tunnels. It’s like a large underground maze. He grumbles to himself the entire way because he knows his oldest friend who is already on edge is not going to take what he has to report well. When he reaches his destination he sees Bane crouched down in front of a fire with several men around nervously waiting for his return. 

Bane stands with a groan as he hears Barsad approaching. Barsad himself is looking at him nervously. “Well? Did you find her?” Bane says impatiently and aggressively.

Barsad takes a deep breath. “Yes. But you aren’t going to like where she is….”

“I am in no mood for games. Where is she?”

“She’s with her brother and staying at Bruce Wayne’s mansion. I remembered her saying she once lived in Gotham so I did some research, her and Bruce Wayne knew each other as children. They went to school together until she moved away after her mother died.”

A terrifying and humorless laugh echoes through Bane’s mask. “It is a small and cruel world is it not Barsad?” Bane says as he walks towards two trembling and badly beaten men sitting on the ground. The two men who were supposed to be guarding the back side of the house that you escaped from.

One curls more into himself. “You….you said you wouldn’t kill us if you found her unharmed.”

Bane puts his hands on the man’s face. “I said I would consider not killing you. And I have done so.” He glances over his shoulder at Barsad having a brief silent conversation.

Barsad looks at the two men unapologetically before he answers Bane. “She’s on crutches because she has a broken ankle.”

Bane nods his head once. “After further consideration I have decided to kill you.” Then he snaps the man’s neck. He moves over to the second man and gives him the same fate. Then he looks to Barsad when he’s done. “We need to get her away from Wayne before Talia finds her.”


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have never written a story this fast before, but I just can't stop writing. I think this is my favorite fic I've written so far.
> 
> So how about finally reuniting with Bane?

CHAPTER 17

Beautiful bright red roses lay in a nice bouquet on the table in front of you. After glaring at them like they wronged you personally, you pick them up and throw them in the fireplace happily watching them burn. You turn to the man that gave them to you with a deep frown on your face.

"Seriously? I know you're more used to high maintenance supermodels that stare at you with hearts in their eyes. But did you really think giving me flowers would make my heart melt and forgive you for breaking a very important promise?!"

Bruce reaches for your hand but you rip it away and hop back on one foot to your chair. "(Y/N) I'm sorry. But I heard you crying the other night and I made a judgment call."

"That wasn't why I was crying. And if anything happens to Eddie I'm holding you personally responsible. He's all I have!"

Bruce looks at you woefully. "I won't let anything happen to him. And he doesn't have to be all you have. We've known each other a long time. You just need to let me in."

You stomp your one good foot on the floor and angrily point a finger at him. "No! I am not doing this with you right now." A light outside briefly gets your attention and actually brings you some relief. "You're being 'bat summoned' or 'bat signalled'. Whatever the fuck you wanna call it."

Bruce turns and looks out the window behind him. "We'll pick this up when I get back. That'll give you some time to cool off." 

You spent the entire day with Eddie yesterday, and he came back this morning before he went to work. He didn’t want to leave at all, but you told him he should keep his normal routine. So not to draw attention if someone were watching him. He reluctantly agreed, but promised he’d be back tomorrow. 

Then you avoided Bruce all day as you angrily stewed over his broken promise. You are happy to have your brother, but you're still worried something could happen to him. Come dinner time Bruce cornered you and brought you flowers which just pissed you off even more.

A couple of hours later you do eventually cool off. You feel a little bad for being so angry towards Bruce. He has just been trying to help you. But you’re still upset he broke his promise to you. 

You see Alfred go through the hidden door in Bruce’s office that leads to his ‘batcave’ hidden underneath the mansion. So you’re assuming Bruce is back from whatever he was being summoned for.

You hobble your way over to the door and take the hidden elevator to the cave below. The clacking sound of your crutches quickly gives your presence away. But you see Bruce and Alfred looking at a computer screen. Bruce gives you a hesitant smile when he sees you. You stop when you’re just a couple of feet away from him and take a deep breath to steady yourself.

“I’m sorry for yelling at you. I know you are just trying to help me. But I am still unhappy about you breaking your promise.”

Bruce nods his head. “Fair enough. I’m sorry too.”

You decide to put your differences aside after that. Being mad and angry is getting so exhausting for you. “So what was the big emergency? Catch any criminals?” 

He follows your lead and moves on from the previous subject. “They got away, but not until after they hospitalized a few police officers. I’m hoping they got caught on surveillance. That’s what I’m about to look at. It was one of my warehouses that was broken into. Thankfully Lucius had moved anything dangerous out of there a couple months ago.”

You move to the other side of the computer so you can see what Bruce is looking at just out of pure curiosity. The video is dark so you can’t see anything other than some shadows. But when the police arrive the lights in the warehouse turn on. Your eyes immediately zero in on one of the would be robbers. Bane punches one cop rendering him unconscious and knocking his body across the room. He kicks another one in the chest making him fly backwards into a wall. Then Barsad comes into the frame and hits one with the butt of his rifle.

Instantly you start to panic. Why oh why are they in Gotham? “Oh fuck me. I have to get out of here.” You try making a quick getaway but Bruce stops you. He stands in front of you blocking the exit. “(Y/N) hold on, what’s wrong? Do you know those men?”

“You could say that. Now move out of my way.”

He puts his hand up to stop you again. “Not so fast. You’re not getting off that easy. They broke into one of my facilities. I need you to tell me who they are.” You look Bruce in the eyes and he’s giving you a pleading look and you feel your resolve starting to crumble. You bite your lip nervously as you internally argue with yourself until you finally make a decision. “The league of shadows.” You say just above a whisper.

He gives you a confused look. “I don’t understand.”

“Have you ever seen the guy with the mask before?” He shakes his head no. “Those are the men my father hired and handed me over to. The one with the mask is in charge. In charge of the league of shadows.”

He crosses his arms over his chest and looks at you with a raised eyebrow. “I told you my whole story. Don’t you think that would have been the opportune time to mention you know about the league of shadows. Why on earth did you play dumb about it if they are the ones that were holding you hostage?”

“Because I didn’t want to talk about it. Now move out of my way. I need to get out of this fucking city before they come for me. I’m honestly surprised they haven’t yet. I told you what they did to the CIA on the plane. What do you think they would do to you?”

“Do they know who I am? None of them look familiar to me.”

“I really don’t know. Bane just told me he doesn’t do business in Gotham because there’s too much interference. He never elaborated and I never asked. But I’m actually surprised Talia hasn’t come looking for Batman considering you were partially responsible for her father’s death. She’s a fucking cunt by the way.”

Bruce’s eyes go wide. “Ra’s Al Ghul had a daughter? Any other details you’ve been withholding?” He says almost scornfully.

Alfred interrupts the back and forth argument you’re having. “Master Bruce, the alarm is going off. You’re being signalled again.”

Bruce looks at you as he thinks. You can practically hear the gears turning. “Twice in one night is really out of the ordinary. You think it's them again? Maybe they’re trying to get me out of the mansion to get to you. That is if they know who I am though.”

You lean your head back, look up towards the ceiling and groan. “It’s entirely plausible. But if they know who you are I don’t know why they’ve left you alone. No offence but Bane could easily snap you in half, and he said Ra’s Al Ghul was his mentor. I imagine he wasn’t entirely pleased about his death.”

He uncrosses his arms and puts his hands on your shoulders. “Just hear me out. Let me go answer the call, but I’ll bring you with me. You can stay safely locked in the car, they won’t be able to see you or get to you. That way if they are trying to get into the mansion they’ll come up empty because you won’t be here.”

Reluctantly you agreed to go with Bruce. It actually seemed like a pretty good idea. There’s an awkward silence as Bruce drives out of the hidden cave and towards the city. Again you absentmindedly start playing with the ring on the chain around your neck. You haven’t taken the necklace off once. 

Why would Bane bother coming after you? If he has Talia back why would you matter? Unless he does see you as a possession, but it never felt that way. But you had a lot of things wrong it seems.

Bruce’s voice pulls you from your inner turmoil. “What’s with the ring?” You quickly drop it and tuck it back inside your shirt. “Nothing. Just a piece of jewelry.” You don’t sound very convincing but Bruce lets it go and asks you a different question. “Tell me about Bane.”

“I don’t want to talk about him. That’s why I never told you about him in the first place.”

Before he can argue with you more he thankfully arrives to where he was being called to. “Just stay here. The windows are blacked out, they can’t see you. It will be locked. You’re safe. Alright?”

You just nod your head in response. He quickly jumps out. You anxiously wait and look around outside. It’s dark and eerily quiet. Too quiet, especially for Gotham. Feeling paranoid you constantly keep checking in every direction, but never see anyone. Which is also concerning. This part of town should be filled with people. 

After about 10 minutes you see Bruce coming back. He opens the door but suddenly gets pulled underneath the car. A man dressed in black with his face covered jumps inside and aggressively rips you from the car. You start screaming in fear, and also screaming for Bruce. A second man appears and they both carry you away. You try squirming out of their hold but end up hurting your ankle more and you cry out in pain.

One man harshly claps a hand over your mouth. “Will you shut the fuck up?!” The other guy rips his hand away. “What the fuck are you doing? He’ll kill you if she’s injured.”

You immediately know they are talking about Bane. They carry you underground through some tunnels that run beneath the city. With your broken ankle you know you have no chance of getting away. You cry and scream the whole way. You don’t stop until you hear a familiar voice. “You’re hurting her you idiots! Give her to me.”

“Barsad?” You rasp out. When you see him you feel relieved and reach for him. He scoops you up in his arms and you wrap your arms around his neck. “Are you alright?” His voice full of concern as he looks you over for injuries.

You don’t respond because the hissing sound from Bane’s mask catches your attention. He’s kneeling down on the ground near a fire with no shirt on. Even from across the room you can see the scars on his back.

“Why are you here?” His annoyed voice echoes through the room. For a moment you think he’s talking to you. But Barsad points to the two men that dragged you down there. “He’s talking to the two of you.”

The one that held his hand over your mouth responds to Bane. “You said you wanted us to get the girl. So here she is.”

“And you brought her down here? My instructions were not to bring her down here but to the safehouse, and she was to be unharmed. She doesn’t sound unharmed now does she?” He groans as he stands up and turns to face the assholes that were just manhandling you.

“She was being difficult and fighting us, but she’s fine.”

Barsad turns his body away from Bane and whispers to you. “Close your eyes.” You immediately comply because you know he's warning you about what is inevitably about to happen to those two men. 

Bane grips both men by the throat. “Her tears and screams say otherwise.” He crushes their windpipes until their lifeless bodies fall to the ground. Then you hear Bane call out to Barsad. “Go see if they were followed. He’ll come for her.”

Barsad walks across the room to where the fire is and sets you in a chair, but you refuse to release your hold on him. “You will be okay, I promise. I will be right back.” Finally you concede and remove your arms from his neck. As he walks away you try looking anywhere but at Bane. But you can feel his eyes on you.

“Are you hurt?” He rasps out with that deep voice you have missed hearing. But you're not going to let him know that.

You scoff at him. “Physically or mentally? And actually why do you even care after what you did?!” Your voice full of anger and hurt. 

When he stays silent that actually seems to hurt more. Your emotions are all over the place right now. You can hear his heavy footsteps approaching. He kneels down across from you on the other side of the fire.

“What do you mean after what I did?”

Tears start clouding your vision as the image of what you saw that night appears in the forefront of your mind. Feels like having your heart ripped out all over again. “Don’t play dumb with me! I saw you and Talia kissing. Where is your precious Talia anyway? I thought you two were inseparable?”

His own eyes look full of sadness. “(Y/N) it’s not what you think.”


	18. Chapter 18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Time for an explanation and a showdown. Queue ominous music.

CHAPTER 18

Staring blankly at the man in front of you, you wish he didn’t have a mask on so you could slap him across the face. You narrow your eyes at him. “How could the two of you kissing while she’s sitting on your lap not possibly be what I think?”

An exasperated sigh comes from Bane as he keeps his eyes on yours. “If you would have waited one more second you would have seen me push her away. I had just taken my mask off and was on my way to our room. She pulled me into an office before I got to the stairwell to talk to me. I set my mask down on the table and she started arguing with me about you again. When I sat down she climbed on top of me and kissed me, but I pushed her away. By the time I got to our room you were gone. I didn’t understand why you left until now.”

Once he’s done talking you start laughing at him humorlessly. “That’s a great story, you almost had me there for a second. Do you really expect me to believe that? What about the way you started treating me the second she showed up?”

“Talia has feelings for me that I do not reciprocate. I love her the way you love your brother. I have no romantic feelings for her, she was a small child when I met her. I still see her as that small child. That’s one of the reasons she left. She thought if she stayed away it would punish me and I would change my mind. She came back because she found out about you. I was trying to keep her away from you so that she could not harm you. The time I spent away from you was to try and talk sense into her and keep you safe. I am sorry for not telling you. I didn’t want you to worry. Even though you left she still wants to kill you. So I had to find you before she did.”

Part of you wants to just go crawl into his arms. The other part of you is still afraid he’s playing you. “I want to believe you, but how can I? There’s so much you have lied to me about.”

His brow furrows at that. “I have not once ever lied to you. Kept secrets, yes I am guilty of that. But every word I have ever spoken to you has been true.”

As you look him in the eyes trying to determine if he’s telling the truth the lights suddenly go out. You can still see Bane though, his face is illuminated by the fire burning between the two of you. He huffs in annoyance and grunts as he stands back up. “If you think darkness is your ally Mr. Wayne you are sorely mistaken.”

Oh no this is bad. So so bad. Someone’s going to wind up badly hurt, probaby Bruce. The lights come back on and you see Bruce still in his full Batman outfit standing several feet away from Bane. Bruce makes eye contact with you. “Are you alright?” You just nod your head in silent response. The only sound heard for a moment is Bane’s breathing through his mask.

“She is fine. She knows I would never harm her. You should worry more about yourself, because you I will certainly harm.”

“Bane don’t! You don’t need to hurt him!” You yell out in a panic. But they both seem to ignore you. 

Bruce takes a single step closer toward Bane. “Yet you had your lackeys drag her down here through the tunnels against her will. Is she the only reason you’re in Gotham?”

“All you need to know Bruce is you took something precious from me, so I have taken something precious from you.” Bane waves his hand and a dozen league members file in. Two of which are pulling a tied up Alfred into the room. You start yelling at Bane again. “Let him go dammit! He has nothing to do with this!”

Again your protests are ignored as the two men charge at each other throwing punches. You watch in horror as Bane lands punch after punch against Bruce’s body. As they are fighting Barsad makes his way back into the room and comes to your side. He tries picking you up to take you out of the room but you stop him.

When you turn your head back to the fighting men you see Bruce gets a couple punches in but the last one he throws Bane catches. With his free hand he picks Bruce up by his neck lifting him off the ground. 

You try pleading with him again. “Bane Stop! Please. You don’t need to kill him!”

He finally turns his eyes towards you. You’re not sure what he sees in your eyes but whatever it is makes him release his hold on Bruce and drops him on the ground. Bruce takes advantage of you distracting Bane and punches his mask hard. Some of the pieces come loose and you hear air escaping the mask. 

You can instantly see the pain in Bane’s eyes as he groans and reaches for his mask. Bruce keeps hitting him and kicks him once in the stomach knocking Bane to the ground. Now you’re pleading with Bruce instead. 

“Bruce stop it! You’re hurting him!” You scream at him as you stand up and grab onto Barsad for support. Bruce looks at you in confusion as you have Barsad help you get to Bane. When you’re close enough you drop to the ground and crawl into Bane’s lap. As you start reattaching the pieces of his mask that came apart you can hear his labored breathing from the pain he’s currently enduring. 

“Why are you defending him? He’s a monster.” Bruce growls out from behind you.

You look Bane in the eyes as you answer Bruce. “Underneath this mask he is not a monster, far from it actually. And I love him.” A single tear falls from Bane’s eye. You’re not sure if it's from the pain or from your words. Once you have his mask put back together you put your hands on his face and kiss his forehead. “Will you stop this please? Let Alfred and Bruce go.”

He closes his eyes and nods his head. Before he can give the order to his men there’s a loud commotion coming from behind you. It’s Talia being dragged into the room by a couple men. She looks at Bruce like she’s terrified, which you find strange. “Help me Bruce.” She pleads to him.

You can’t see his face, but you can tell by his voice he’s confused. “Miranda? What’s going on?” Why did he call her Miranda? He doesn’t know who she is. “Bruce! That’s Talia Al Ghul!” You try warning him. 

He now has his head turned toward you so he doesn’t see her smiling smugly and pulling a gun out of her jacket. You painfully jump to your feet and push him out of the way just as there is a loud bang echoing through the room. A sharp pain that’s not from your broken ankle shoots through your body as you hit the ground hard and everything goes black.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did you really think I'd make Bane a cheater? Come on he's better than that.


	19. Chapter 19

CHAPTER 19

The sounds of an incessant beeping reaches your ears and you wake with a groan. When you feel a hand on your face it startles you and your eyes fly open. Once your eyes come into focus on the face in front of you it calms you down. “Eddie?” You whisper.

He gives you a sad smile. “Yeah sis it’s me. You have no idea how happy I am to see you awake. I can be broken without being held. Some people use me to deceive, but when delivered, I am the greatest gift of all.”

You’ve been conscious for thirty seconds and he’s already giving you riddles. You give him the best smile you muster in your tired state. “What am I promising you?”

His face turns serious. “Never ever do this again. No jumping in front of bullets. I mean it. I can’t lose my big sister again.”

Slowly everything starts coming back to you. The fight with Bruce and Bane. Then Talia showing up. “Okay Eddie, I’m sorry. I promise. But what happened? Where am I?”

“You’re in Gotham General Hospital, and under a fake name. Bruce paid for you to have a private room after you apparently took a bullet for him. Even though he has a bulletproof suit.” He says with a frown as he scolds you. If you weren’t so exhausted you would find it funny.

“He doesn’t have a bulletproof face. She was aiming for his face. Is he okay? And where’s Bane, is he okay?” As you’re talking you try sitting up but you’re instantly overwhelmed with an immense amount of pain and dizziness that makes you cry out. Eddie quickly comes to your aid and helps you lie back down while scolding you for a second time. “Don’t do that. You got shot in the shoulder and hit your head hard on the cement. You were put in a drug induced coma for a week so the swelling around your brain could go down.”

You take a couple deep breaths and groan again. Now you understand why he was so worried. "Sorry Dr. Nygma. Is that why I feel like I have a hangover without the party?”

A small chuckle comes from Eddie. “That’s one way of describing it. I can't be bought, but I can be stolen with a glance. I'm worthless to one, but priceless to two. What am I?”

“Love. You know I love you too. I’m sorry for scaring you.”

Eddie smiles and kisses your temple. “I love you too sis, but I wasn’t talking about me. There’s someone that wants to talk to you. I won’t be far. I’ll just be waiting right outside. But don’t you dare try moving again, doctors orders.”

You smile at that and also don’t argue. Eddie then steps out of the room. When the door shuts you hear movement on the other side of the room. Someone else was already in the room with the two of you, but you can’t lift your head to see who it is. A body fills the chair your brother was just sitting in. You almost think you’re dreaming or hallucinating when you see his face.

He leans on the bed and you reach with your good arm putting your hand on his handsome face. “Isn’t it risky for you to be here? And with no mask?” Bane gives you a shy but sad smile. He’s dressed very unusually for him. He has on a hat and a hooded sweater without his mask. There’s even a little scruff on his face. He looks like a regular guy off the street. “The police are looking for a bald masked man. No one knows my face. Nothing was going to stop me from staying by your side.”

“I thought too much of the pain medicine makes you drowsy?”

He turns his face and kisses the palm of your hand. Then gently pulls your hand away from his face to hold your hand and laces your fingers together. “It does. But your brother is quite smart. Seems he has also been studying chemistry. He altered it to last longer and without the side effects.” You squeeze his hand and smile. You'll have to thank Eddie for that later. “So you finally trusted a doctor?”

“Of course not. I trusted your brother, he’s not a doctor yet.” He says with a hint of humor in his voice. With his free hand he runs his fingers through your hair and his face turns serious. “I promised to protect you from the beginning. I have failed miserably at doing so. I am so sorry little one. For a while I thought I had lost you for good.”

“It’s not your fault, but will you please tell me what happened?”

He continues running his fingers through your hair as he talks. “After you pushed Bruce out of the way Talia ran off. Bruce and I agreed on what I guess you could call a ceasefire for your sake so that you could be taken care of. He took you to the hospital and I went to your brother. Eddie’s been with you the entire time. He’s been allowing Bruce and I take turns staying with you. But we haven’t seen each other since the tunnels.”

“You know I have a lot of questions about the league and Bruce right? Why didn’t you ever tell me you knew him? And how did he not know you?”

“To be fair you never told me you knew him either. I never thought my knowledge of him to be of any importance to you. His time in Nanda Parbat was spent entirely with Ra’s Al Ghul. I knew who he was mentoring, but Talia and I were never in the same place as Bruce at the same time. So he never saw us. We were also on a separate task when Ra’s Al Ghul laid siege on this city. After his death the league left Bruce alone because it was Talia’s decision on how to avenge her father. That was the other half of the disagreement I previously had with her. She wanted to bomb the entire city and watch it burn from inside. It would have been a suicide mission. I told her I would help her but not like that. So she’s been here in Gotham toying with him under a fake name, Miranda Tate. That is until she heard about you thanks to Joker and returned home.”

Stupid Joker, you think to yourself. There’s a moment where the two of you just stare at each other. A lot of this disastrous situation could have been avoided if you would have just talked to each other. 

“Why all the secrets? Why couldn’t you just explain things to me? Especially the situation with Talia.”

He bites his bottom lip nervously as he thinks. He looks so sexy everytime he does that. You have missed his beautiful face so much. “Part of it was because I’m not used to having to tell anyone anything. To pour my heart out or confess to anyone. The other part because I didn’t want to scare you off. Can I ask you something, and you answer me honestly?”

“Yeah, of course. What is it?”

He finally breaks eye contact with you and looks at the wall instead. “Do you want to stay here, in Gotham? With Eddie and…...Bruce?”

The last part came out like it pained him to say it outloud, and you’re a little taken back by his question. “Did you not hear what I said to Bruce as I was fixing your mask?”

“I did, but there’s different ways to love someone. And you did take a bullet for Bruce.”

You release his hand and move it back to his face rubbing your thumb across his cheek bone. “You silly, foolish man. Why do you think I was so heartbroken when I saw you and Talia together? I care about Bruce, but I’m in love with you. I’ve heard you tell me you love me when you think I’m sleeping. You are the one I want.”

A true smile slowly appears on his face. “You sneaky girl, you heard that? Well I meant it, but I feared you wouldn’t feel the same. I love you (Y/N).” He leans down to kiss you but you put a finger against his lips to stop him.

“Wait. I have two of my own secrets to tell you. If you’re not mad at me afterwards you can kiss me and promise me no more secrets between us. Got it?” He nods his head with a furrowed brow. “Bruce kissed me a couple days ago.” You see Bane’s eyes darken as he takes in what you just said.

“Listen first, before you start puffing your chest out. It felt wrong and I cried myself to sleep that night. Because I wanted you to be kissing me not him.”

He releases the breath you didn’t realize he was holding and nods his head. “Okay, I can forgive that one then. What’s the other?”

You take a deep breath because you’re more worried about telling him this secret than the other one. But if you don’t want him to keep things from you, you can’t keep things from him. “This was before you and I were anything. You were gone for two weeks finishing that job for Joker after you rescued me. I was training with Barsad and had a confused emotional moment of weakness and kissed him.”

As you said the last sentence he quickly sat upright and moved away from your touch. Several different emotions pass across his face. Mostly hurt and anger from the looks of it. “Please don’t be mad at him. He freaked out when I did it, and made me promise never to do it again. Neither of us have feelings for each other like that I swear.”

After a long silent pause that seems to drag on forever he takes a deep breath and his shoulders slump while he shakes his head. “Honestly I thought you had feelings for him for a while. You were friendlier with him and would talk to him and only argued and fought with me.”

“Well that’s not the case. Now I have no more secrets. I know you have plenty you still haven’t told me. So can I be forgiven?”

He just stares at you blankly for a moment. Then his eyes finally soften and he leans down hovering his lips just above yours. “Can I hear you say it again?” You smile when you figure out what he means. “I love you Bane.” 

He smiles back at you and gently presses his lips against yours. Your heart feels like it’s piecing itself back together as he moves his lips against yours. When he breaks the kiss he leans up kissing your forehead then sits back down in the chair. “I promise you no more secrets. What else do you want to know?”

You blurt out the first question that pops into your head. “Do you want Bruce dead or to destroy Gotham like Ra’s Al Ghul did?”

“Even though he’s partly responsible for Ra’s Al Ghul’s death he can’t be solely to blame, he made his own choices. When I discovered Ra's Al Ghul left for Gotham I asked him to wait, but he refused. He underestimated his former student so his death was a cause of his own actions. He created his own fate. I was willing to help Talia seek revenge as she saw fit. As far as destroying Gotham, I told you I don’t kill women or children. Killing an entire city would go against that would it not?”

You nod your head at him. “Okay, what about Talia? Are you still willing to help her? And is she still going to try and kill me?”

He takes your hand once again and gets a saddened look on his face. “I’ll be honest. I’m at a loss on what to do about Talia. I kept hoping she would come to understand my love for you, but she just became more resentful and jealous. For you I will leave Bruce be, but I cannot promise she won’t stop trying to kill him. I don’t want to hurt her, as I already told you I still see her as that small child I once protected. But I won’t let her hurt you anymore than she already has either. I need time to figure out what to do about her.” 

As you take in everything he said you remember something. You pull your hand away and reach for the chain that's been around your neck but come up empty. Bane figures out what you're looking for and reaches into his pocket. He dangles the chain with the ring hanging from it above your face. “Looking for this? You did take better care of it this time like you promised. But if you were so angry with me why did you keep it?”

“At first it was because I left in such a hurry I forgot I had it. But later it just felt like that was the only piece of you I had left and I never took it off.”

He smiles at you as he takes the ring off the chain and holds the ring with his thumb and index finger. “I suppose this here is another secret I never told you. It was my mother’s ring, so thank you for keeping it safe.” Your eyes go wide. Oops. No wonder he was so mad when you just left it sitting on a nightstand that second time you took off.

A small laugh escapes him as he looks at your wide eyes. Then takes the ring holding it next to your ring finger. “How would you feel about no longer pretending to be my wife?”

Before you can respond there's a knock on the door and a doctor enters the room asking Bane to leave so he can examine you. Bane puts the ring back in his pocket and presses a kiss to your forehead. “I won’t be far.” He whispers.

After the doctor examines you. He says you’re healing well but can’t leave for a few days. When the doctor leaves the room Eddie immediately accosts him in the hallway to find how you’re doing. When he’s satisfied with the information he’s given he comes back into the room to stay with you. 

You smile at Eddie when he sits down. “It’s weird having you fuss over me. It’s usually the other way around. Who do they think you are to me anyway?”

He shrugs his shoulders. “I don’t know, Bruce took care of a few things so I haven’t been asked. He probably paid them not to ask questions.” He says jokingly. He leans forward with his elbows on the bed as he smiles back at you. “I suppose it’s my turn to repay you for all the years you fussed over me. And apparently I’m the only person you’ll listen to. From what I’ve been told you are extremely stubborn to everyone except for me.”

You smile at him sheepishly, and then start yawning. Even though you apparently slept for a week straight you start feeling sleepy. Your brother quickly takes notice. “Get some rest. I’ll be here when you wake up.”

“Wait, where’s Bane?” He asked you a question. It sounded like he was proposing but the doctor ruined the moment before you could question him further.

Eddie gives you a knowing look. “Don’t worry your prince charming will be back. He doesn’t stay gone for long.” 

You snort out a laugh which was actually kind of painful. But Bane being compared to prince charming is funny. “He told me what you did for him. Thank you for helping him. I know he looks intimidating at first.”

“I know what it’s like to be judged, so I didn’t judge him based on his appearance. After he explained everything to me, that what happened between you was a misunderstanding I decided to help him. I mostly did it for you though, because you deserve to be happy. Now will you get some sleep please. We can talk more when you wake up.”

“So bossy. Yes, Dr. Nygma.” You say sarcastically as you start drifting off to sleep the moment your eyes close. 

The next time you wake up Eddie’s asleep in his chair. Your poor brother, he must be drained after looking after you 24/7. You feel horrible. But you would do the same for him. 

There’s a knock on the door, you assume it’s going to be the doctor or nurse coming to check on you. Or hopefully Bane’s back. 

When the door opens you try not to look disappointed. Bruce gives you a hesitant smile as he approaches you. “I heard sleeping beauty was awake.” You smile back at him. “Yeah not so sure I look like a disney princess right now, but I’m awake at least.”

He pulls out a bouquet of flowers he was hiding behind his back and sets them on the table. “Thank you Bruce. I promise I won’t burn them this time.”

He chuckles at you as he sits on the edge of the bed and takes your hand into his. “I figured it was safe since you can’t have a fire in the hospital. How are you feeling?”

You glance at your sleeping brother before answering him. He’s snoring quietly. Yeah, he’s going to be out for a while. “Like I got hit by a truck. But it could have been worse.”

Bruce’s face drops and his eyes look sad. “I’m not sure where to start. So much happened so fast. But I guess I should start by thanking you for what you did. Miranda…..Talia really had me fooled. I did not see her coming.”

“I told you she was a cunt. I didn’t even hesitate though when I saw her pull the gun out. I do care about you Bruce. Are you and Alfred both okay?”

He nods his head and his eyes shift as he thinks. “Yeah we’re fine. We were more worried about you. I care about you a lot too. But you love someone else right?”

You give him a sad smile and take a slow deep breath. “Despite the circumstances that brought me and him together I fell for him over time. I ran from him because I thought he cheated on me with Talia. I was heartbroken. That’s why I didn’t want to talk about him. I’m sorry for keeping things from you. I wasn’t trying to hurt you.”

“I can’t say I understand it, but as your brother pointed out it doesn’t matter as long as you're happy. And I can’t be mad at you since you took a bullet for me.” He leans down and kisses your cheek. “Friends?”

“Friends.”


	20. Chapter 20

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Second to last chapter guys.
> 
> It took me a lot longer to get these two chapters done. Had a mild case of writer's block.

CHAPTER 20

Standing next to the plane in the private airfield is a bittersweet moment. You're happy to finally be leaving the hospital and reunited with Bane, but sad to be leaving your brother. Eddie and you hug each other tightly with tears in your eyes. You're going back to Nanda Parbat with Bane. But this time Eddie has a way to contact you. He's been given a phone he can reach you on. Even though you'll be far away you can still talk to each other.

Bruce promised you he would watch over Eddie for you. So you feel like he'll be safe in Gotham, and you'll visit him when you can. He said when he’s done with his internship he wants to come to you. Which would be rather humorous, seeing him trying to tell trained assassins his riddles. He never questioned or judged your decision to leave or your relationship with Bane. He just accepted it because he said after everything you’ve been through you deserve happiness. You have the best, most understanding brother in the world.

Even though Bruce and Bane had called a truce, temporarily putting their differences aside for you they still don't like each other. Bruce said if he saw the league back in Gotham he would hand them over to the police. Which you can't entirely fault him for that, they did injure several police officers in their ruse to draw Bruce out when they were trying to find you. 

He's also not entirely thrilled about your decision to leave with Bane either, but he at least came to an understanding with you. You said your goodbyes to Bruce and Alfred the previous day when they picked you and Eddie up from the hospital after you were discharged. You spent one last day at Wayne Manor making amends and thanking them for everything they did for you. 

There's also been no sign of Talia since that night in the tunnels. Bruce also said he would keep an eye out for her in case she reemerges. You were worried she may have gone back to Nanda Parbat, but Bane said it was highly unlikely.

You squeeze Eddie tighter not wanting to let go just yet. He tells you one more riddle while he hugs you back. “Tool of thief, toy of queen. Always used to be unseen. Sign of joy, sign of sorrow. Giving all likeness borrowed. What am I?”

You chuckle against his chest. “A mask. I expect you to text me at least one riddle a day, and make them a little harder.” He kisses your forehead and then smiles down at you. “I will. I love you (Y/N), and I’ll miss you.”

“Love you too Eddie.”

As you walk up the steps to the plane you look over your shoulder one last time and wave goodbye to your brother, and he does the same. When you get onto the plane you are instantly pulled into another tight hug. You let out a surprised squeal and hug him back. “Hello to you too Barsad. Miss me?”

He still keeps you in a tight hug as he talks. “Of course I did. But I’m happy to see with my own eyes you're okay. Last time I saw you, you were unconscious and bleeding.” 

Barsad and the league stayed out of Gotham while you were in the hospital. For your sake Bane was trying to keep the peace with Bruce until you could leave the city. “I missed you too my friend.” You whisper into his shoulder.

You later found out after your little confession to Bane about the kiss between you and Barsad he brought it up to Barsad. Brought it up by punching him in the face once. Which you were furious when you found out about it. Even though he believed you were telling the truth, that there were no romantic feelings between the two of you he said his friend had to have some sort of punishment for keeping a secret from him. Barsad was actually happy, he said it was the best case scenario he could have wished for. And he wasn’t mad at you for telling Bane, that was something else you were worried about. He was actually glad to not have a secret anymore. So apparently after that altercation everything was fine between them. 

Behind Barsad you see Bane with his arms crossed over his chest. He has his mask on. Even though Eddie greatly improved his pain medication he’s choosing to keep the mask on around the league. Which is fine with you, it’s his choice. That just means you get his handsome face all to yourself. He exhales loudly, almost sounding annoyed. “Alright that’s enough, time to give her back.”

You chuckle at him. He wasn’t very pleased you spent the previous day with Bruce. Especially since he was now well aware of your past with Bruce and that he still had feelings for you. But you quickly pointed out you were leaving with him, there was nothing to be jealous of. So he hasn’t seen you for over 24 hours. He apparently doesn’t want to share your attention today.

Barsad releases you and you walk over to Bane putting your hands on his chest. “Someone is impatient today. You can’t share me for five minutes?”

His brow furrows. “Absolutely not.” Then he scoops you up in his arms and takes a seat with you in his lap. You kiss his neck since you can’t kiss his lips. “I love you too you big grumpy brute.”

Sitting and watching Bane train the league members makes you wonder why you never did this sooner. He has his shirt off and he’s throwing several men around like rag dolls. But watching his muscles flex and his skin glimmer with sweat practically has you drooling. You normally stayed away from this part of the building. But since you're living here permanently you thought you might as well integrate yourself more. 

Barsad comes and sits next to you. You don’t notice him at first because you’re so caught up with eye fucking your….boyfriend? Still haven’t labeled what you are, and the whole ring thing that happened in the hospital hasn’t been brought up since. So you have convinced yourself that you were so high on morphine that you dreamt the whole thing up. 

Your shoulder being nudged finally pulls you from your R-rated thoughts. “Hmm?” You mumble as you turn your head towards the man sitting next to you. He covers his mouth trying to contain his laughter and not disturb the training that is currently in session. “Do you need to take a cold shower? You’re rather obvious, better wipe that drool off your face.” He says teasingly.

You bite your lip and feel your cheeks heat up and just know you’re blushing. Well it’s been a while and Bane keeps shooting down your attempts at foreplay. He keeps saying you're still healing, give yourself more time. Even though your wounds are healed and a doctor medically cleared you for...physical activity. You’re about ready to go jump him right now because you’re so sexually frustrated. Yes, maybe you should go take a cold shower. You huff as you nudge Barsad back. “Whatever. Shut up.” You have no other words to defend yourself at the moment.

He decides to give you a break and change the subject. “When do you want to restart your training?” You huff again and roll your eyes. “There’s no point Barsad. It’s a waste of time.”

“Why? What do you mean?”

You look down at the ground feeling a little ashamed. “It’s a waste of both of our time. There was a couple times while I was gone that I should have been able to at least attempt to defend myself. But I was frozen with fear and failed to act both times. So it’s pointless. Why train me if I’m not going to use it when it matters?”

He looks at you thoughtfully. “Well now we know what else we need to work on then don’t we? It’s not a waste of time. I told you I wouldn’t give up on you remember? So I’ll also teach you how to overcome your fears. What do you say?”

Finally you lift your head and look him in the eyes. He’s being completely genuine like he always is with you. “Okay fine. If you insist, we’ll give it a try.” His face lights up, feeling victorious. “Good, we start tomorrow.”

You scoff at him. “Better clear that with the big guy, you might get yourself in trouble. He seems to think I’m going to break or something.” He shrugs his shoulders. “Well to be fair you did scare the shit out of him. Both of us actually. He really didn’t think you were going to make it there for a while. So give him a little break. You know he’s not one to get scared.” Your shoulders slump and you hang your head. Well he has a point. Can’t be mad at him for that.

After your chat with Barsad you decide to take that much needed cold shower. When you come out wrapped in a towel and drying your hair with another you’re surprised to see Bane in the room in the process of taking his mask off. You give him a coy smile. “Hey there handsome.”

He silently approaches you. When he’s standing just inches from you he reaches his hand out and runs the tips of his fingers across the scar on your shoulder. Then runs his hand down the length of your arm until he reaches your hand, lacing your fingers together. You look up into his eyes. “Hey, I’m alright now. I’m here with you and I’m perfectly fine.”

He nods his head ever so slightly. “I know, but that day still haunts me. This scar will forever be a painful reminder of the day I almost lost you.” With your free hand you put it flat against his chest and push. He willingly moves backwards until the back of his knees hit the bed and he sits down. Then you put both of your hands on his face. “Maybe it will stop haunting you if you stop dwelling on it. Focus on me here in front of you now.”

Then you press your lips to his. He doesn’t hesitate to kiss you back. The kiss quickly gets heated, but as per usual with him recently he stops before it can get too far. You try talking to him without sounding frustrated which is very difficult. “Please don’t stop. Just let go and let me help you forget. Please?”

He doesn’t say anything in response, but he gently puts his large hand on the back of your neck pulling you back in for a kiss. He moves his soft lips against yours until you're forced to break apart for air. You move your lips along his jaw and down to his neck. “Don’t you want me?” You whine as you leave a trail of kisses across his skin. 

“Of course I do.” He rasps out. You smile against his skin and reach for your towel with one hand to open it and let it fall to the floor. Lets see him try and control himself while you’re bare in front of him. He lets out a groan that turns into a growl. His hands immediately start roaming your body and his lips latch onto your skin. He kisses your neck, licking his way down to your breasts and belly.

You reach for his shirt, practically tearing it off of him, forcing him to lose contact with your body momentarily. Once the shirt is discarded his lips latch onto your skin again and he slips a hand between your thighs. Touching you where you’ve been dying to have him for weeks. You moan out in pleasure as he slips a finger inside you. “Oh fuck yes, don’t you dare stop.” You can feel his lips smiling against your skin from your words.

You are feeling impatient and reach for his pants and start unbuckling his belt. Much to your surprise he doesn’t stop you. Once you free him from the confines of his pants you climb into his lap. Then your lips find his as you slowly sink down onto his hard length making both of you gasp into each other's mouths. 

Once you're fully seated on his lap with him fully inside you his hands go to your hips. Your arms rest on his shoulders with a hand on the back of his neck. “I have missed having you inside me.”

“As have I little one, as have I.” He pants out sounding short of breath already and you haven’t even moved yet. You capture his lips once again and start rolling your hips. You move slowly at first. Then you pick up the pace setting a steady rhythm and he helps guide your hips.

When kissing becomes too difficult his face presses against your neck. He does most of the work as he lifts you up with ease and then you slam back down hard against him. Your eyes roll back as you both start moving faster and you feel yourself on the edge. Bane tenses beneath you and his breathing stutters, so you know he’s close too. 

He thrusts up into you as you slam down against him hitting the right spot over and over until he pushes you over the edge. You cry out as you reach your climax as does he at the same time spilling inside you. 

You rest your forehead against his as you try catching your breath and press a gentle kiss to his lips. “I love you.”

“I love you too (Y/N).”

Barsad tries to contain his laughter at your reaction to his plan he just explained for your training. “Have you gone fucking mad? You can’t be fucking serious. Exactly how hard did Bane hit you in the head that one day?”

“You need to face your fears right? Do you have a better idea? No, I think not.”

You look at the other two men in the room dressed like fucking ninjas. He seriously wants you to fight two trained assassins. Sounds pretty fucking insane to you. Barsad puts his hand on your shoulder. “You are used to practicing with me. You’re used to the way I move and know what to expect, and of course you know I wouldn’t hurt you. Practicing with unknown league members will force you to face your fears and focus on using the skills you’ve learned.”

“Did you tell Bane about this insane plan of yours?”

He nods his head with a smile. “Of course. Thanks to you convincing him you aren’t a fragile piece of glass he easily agreed.” You groan at yourself. After working out your sexual frustrations repeatedly and pleading with Bane to put the past behind him he finally loosened up. You were overly convincing it seems. You know Barsad is right, it’s really not a horrible idea. It’s just a scary idea, which you suppose is the whole point in the first place.

You take a deep breath and roll your shoulders as you make eye contact with Barsad. “Okay fine, lets fucking do this.”

Your daily ass kickings go on for a couple weeks, but you refuse to give up. Each day it’s a different pair of league members. Bane’s not entirely pleased about the bruises littered all over your body, but he admires your determination. After your last training session he found you face planted on the bed fast asleep.

You wake when strong arms shift you around on the bed. When he moves you to a more comfortable position he goes to pull away but you latch on to him. “No. Stay.” You sleepily mumble out. He lets out an amused laugh but does what you ask and lays down on the bed next to you. You immediately curl into him and lay your head on his chest. He rubs one hand up and down your back. The other plays with your left hand that's laying flat on his chest. “You know little one I asked you a question a couple months ago and you never gave me an answer.”

That makes your eyes fly wide open. “What...what question?” 

“I’m certain you know what I mean.” He says just above a whisper. You slowly lift your head so you can see his eyes. He has his mask off which always brings a smile to your face. “If it’s what I think you mean I confess since you never brought it up again I thought I was so drugged up in the hospital that I dreamed it.”

He smiles and puts a hand on your face. “You silly girl. I suppose we did get interrupted in the hospital.” He removes his hand and reaches around the nightstand next to the bed. When he finds what he’s looking for he takes a hold of your left hand. “(Y/N) will you be my wife, my real wife?” Then he holds the ring next to your finger.

You lunge upwards at him and crash your lips against his. When you pull away you smile bright at him. “Yes, yes I will. I love you.”

You don’t leave the bedroom the rest of the evening. The next morning you force yourself to roll out of bed and untangle yourself from your soon to be husband. That’s not a word you would have ever dreamed of calling him. Your husband. But you’re excited and can’t wait to tell Eddie. First you need to get through your morning training. You wonder if Barsad knows, you can’t wait to tell him either. After you get dressed you kiss Bane before you leave, and he almost doesn’t let you go. “No. Stay.” He mumbles out just like you did the night before. 

“I’ll be back in a little while. I’ll climb back into bed with you when I get back.” You say with a smile. He cracks one eye open. “Promise?”

“Promise.” You kiss him once more and he finally releases his hold on you.

Walking through the halls you can’t wipe the love sick smile off your face. So you didn’t have a doped up fantasy dream in the hospital after all. Barsad’s probably going to laugh at your dopey smile, but you couldn’t care less. When you get to the training room your smile falters a little. Barsad’s not there. He always beats you there. It’s not like him to over sleep or be late at all for that matter. “Barsad? Are you hiding? Are you going to do some bullshit sneak attack to be funny?”

“Barsad is indisposed right now.” A cold voice speaks up behind you.

Your shoulders stiffen at the sound of the voice. “Fuck.” You mutter to yourself and you slowly turn around to face the person. When you fully face her and lock eyes with her you see the angry death glare she’s giving you. “Talia….what have you done with Barsad?”

She gives you an evil smile. “I wouldn’t worry about him if I were you. You should worry more about yourself. You don’t belong here, and I’ll make Bane understand that soon enough. Time to get rid of you once and for all.”

Every fiber in your body is telling you to flee, your fight or flight response kicking in. But that’s not what Barsad has been working so hard to teach you. So you force yourself to steal your nerves and face the bitch in front of you. “Do you honestly think by getting rid of me or killing me that will suddenly make Bane want to be with you? He didn’t want to be with you before he met me. So how would killing his fiance change his feelings?”

You didn’t think through that last sentence, it just kind of came out. You weren’t trying to taunt her by blurting out your new relationship status with the object of her desires. It was really just meant to state a fact. But she obviously didn’t see it that way. Her eyes zero in on the ring on your left hand. “I’m going to cut his mother’s ring off your cold dead hand when I’m finished with you!”

Then she runs at you with a dagger in her hand. Oh I am so fucked. Is the first thought that pops into your head. You manage to move out of the way but she still grazes your upper arm with the sharp blade. Blood instantly starts dripping down your arm, but with the adrenaline pumping the pain doesn’t phase you.

She knocks your legs out from under you making you fall flat on your back as she jumps on top of you with both hands holding the handle of the dagger aiming for your heart. Using your arms you hold her back just before she can make contact with your body. “You crazy fucking bitch.” You scream at her.

Telling yourself to focus you flip her and the blade over and jab it into the floor next to her head. “That’s enough Talia!” She ignores you and quickly retaliates, knocking you off of her and jumping to her feet.

As you pull yourself off the ground she’s already coming at you again. You quickly hit her in the throat causing her to choke and moves hands to her neck as tries catching her breath. You land one quick and hard kick to her gut to get her away from you. But she stumbles backwards as falls down the stairwell behind her.

Just as she’s falling Barsad and Bane come barreling into the room. She falls down a couple flights of stairs until her body finally stops rolling. You run to the railing and gasp when you see her lifeless body laying at the bottom. She broke her neck on the tumble down. Tears start filling your eyes as you realize what you’ve done and see the shocked and devastated look on Bane’s face. 

“I….I’m sorry. She came at me. I was just…”

“Stop (Y/N). Just stop. Barsad get her out of here. Now.” His voice sounds cold and he won’t look at you.

Barsad gives you a once over with his eyes and sees where your arm is still bleeding. He gently grasps your uninjured arm pulling you out of the room without a word. You walk out in a daze and blindly follow him through the halls. He takes you to his room to clean up your arm. After he guides you into a chair he puts his hand under your chin. “(Y/N) talk to me. Are you alright?”

Your vision is still blurred so you try wiping your eyes and take a deep breath. “I didn’t mean to Barsad. I was just trying to get her away from me. She wouldn’t stop. She just kept coming at me, even tried stabbing through the heart. Bane’s going to hate me now isn’t he?” You choke back a sob at the last part, and the tears start spilling over.

Barsad wraps his arms around you not caring about the mess on your arm. “I’m sorry I wasn’t there, she caught me by surprise and locked me in another room. But it’s not your fault. All you did was protect yourself. Just like I’ve been training you to do. Bane will understand. Let me stitch up your arm and then we’ll worry about the rest, okay?”

You just nod your head without another word. You sit there numbly as he stitches your arm, and don’t even flinch as the needle continuously pierces your skin. You just took a life, it’s the worst feeling in the world. Whether she was a terrible person or not that doesn’t mean you wanted her to die. But she didn’t leave you much choice. 

When Barsad is done he gives you something to help you sleep. He lets you stay in his room until he can go find Bane. Whatever he gave you thankfully knocks you out quickly so you sleep instead of letting your mind spiral out of control with all the emotions going through you. 

The next time you wake up you’re not sure how much time has passed but it’s dark outside again. So you slept most of the day away. You have the feeling of being watched and look over your shoulder. Bane’s sitting in a chair watching you, and realize you’re back in your bedroom. He must have carried you back at some point. The room is dark except for the fire in the fireplace illuminating the room.

Neither of you say anything. You just look at each other like you’re trying to read the other’s thoughts. He has his mask off, but his sad eyes tell you enough. He slowly stands up and walks across the room and sits on the edge of the bed. But he still doesn’t speak.

“I’m sorry.” You whisper to him quietly.

He lifts his hand and gently caresses your face. “Are you alright?” You shrug your shoulders but it causes you to flinch. “I don’t know. But my arm finally hurts.” He doesn’t respond. He just runs his fingers through your hair a few times. 

“Bane, I really am sorry. It was an accident.” 

He puts his finger to your lips to quiet you making you feel a pang of guilt in your chest. “Calm down little one. You have nothing to be sorry for. She was hell bent on killing you, so she gave you no choice but to protect yourself.”

“But...I thought you were angry. You don’t hate me for it? I know she was important to you.”

His eyes look glossy from the light reflecting off the fire. He puts both of his hands on your face. “You are important to me also. Yes I am saddened that it came to this. But like her father her actions led to her own demise. She made a choice and it was the wrong choice. If not for all that extra training you did with Barsad I may have lost you instead. So I know you’re also hurting from what happened, but it was not your fault.”

“You still want me to be your wife?”

“Of course I do. I love you unconditionally.”


	21. Chapter 21

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We've reached the end of the story. I did have a lot of fun writing this chapter.

CHAPTER 21

Sitting in the oversized office chair you anxiously await for its owner to return home. You know you are being dramatic. Bane pointed out he teaches theatricality and deception to the league members. So being a little dramatic on occasion is okay. You hear the sounds of the office door opening and shutting followed by footsteps approaching. With your fingers laced together over your chest you use your leg to twirl yourself around in the chair.

The man stops dead in his tracks with his mouth agape staring at you like he’s seeing a ghost. You smile deviously. “Hey dad.” He just blinks a couple times as he looks back at you in disbelief. “You….you’re supposed to be dead.”

“Sorry to disappoint. But obviously I am very much alive.”

He straightens himself out and glances around the room to make sure no one else is there. “Okay….how? What are you doing here?”

You lean forward putting your clasped hands on top of his desk. “Straight to business then? Since I know you couldn't care less that your eldest and only daughter is alive. You see I was happy to let you believe I was dead since you’re dead to me also. After I took everything from you and knocked you back to the bottom of the barrel I was satisfied. Hell I was ecstatic when the FBI arrested you. I felt you finally got your just desserts. But then you being the little rat bastard that you are, had to go save your own skin again and made a deal with the FBI. Testifying against your former business associates for immunity and witness protection. Well, now that leaves me feeling unsatisfied. Let’s rectify that shall we?”

He narrows his eyes at you as he takes in what you’re saying. “You took everything from me? You’re the one that leaked everything and destroyed my business?! My life! You little fucking bitch. How fucking dare you!”

You shake your finger tsking him. “Ah ah, I’d watch your tongue if I were you. My husband has killed men for just looking at me sideways. Is it weird I find that normal now? I guess I’m desensitized to him just snapping someone's neck in front of me. I mean I did fall in love with the big handsome brute I knew he was, so it’s not like I expect him to change.”

His eyes go wide as you’re rambling and he starts looking around again. “Your husband?” You stand up as you laugh at him. “Yes, Bane is my husband. I guess I do have to give you a tiny bit of credit for that. If not for your cowardice I wouldn't have met my husband. So thank you for that, but it won’t be enough to save your sorry ass.”

He stands a little taller as he glares at you while you walk around his desk heading toward him. “You’re bluffing. You think you can scare me? Have you forgotten who’s in charge? Maybe I should remind you, and make you pay for what you’ve done.” 

You stop when you’re standing directly in front of him and catch him by the wrist when he swings his hand at you. Then you knee him in the groin. As he falls to the ground onto his knees while groaning in pain you keep a hold of his wrist and twist his arm painfully making him cry out even louder. “Now now father dearest, that's no way to treat your daughter. As I think back to all those years that I cowered to you I wonder what I was so afraid of. But then I remember I took the beatings and all of your bullshit for Eddie. He was the first thing you would go to when threatening me. Well guess what? Eddie is very off limits to you now. He sends his regards by the way. He’s sorry he couldn’t be here.”

His eyes have been wide with shock since you caught his wrist before it could connect with your face. “Edward knows you're alive? That little freak bastard. Well you know what it doesn’t matter anyway. If you know I’m in witness protection then you know there are FBI agents stationed nearby. I’m untouchable.”

You burst into laughter. Laughing so hard your eyes start to water. He tries to get up and pull out of your grip so you twist his arm harder and put your other hand around his throat. “And where do you think you’re going? Now, if you say one more thing about Eddie that I don’t like I’ll break your fucking arm. Should break easily too since Bane already broke them once. Don’t worry about those FBI agents by the way. They’ll be napping for a while. So there’s no one around to hear you scream. Still think you’re untouchable?”

When his face starts turning red from lack of oxygen you release your hold on his throat. He puts his free hand around his neck and starts coughing. “What do you want?” He gasps out.

“I want to hear you beg for mercy and forgiveness. Because I have some exciting plans for you. Well it’s exciting for me, probably not so much for you.”

“You...are...are you going to kill me?” He squeaks out, finally sounding scared.

You give him a devilish grin. “I’m not gonna lie, because unlike you I’m not a big fat liar. Killing you did cross my mind. But my wonderful husband graciously pointed out there are far worse fates than death. Death would just be an easy out for you, putting you out of your misery. And I most certainly don’t want that. So no you won’t be dying today. I have a much better punishment planned for you.”

He audibly gulps and you can see him shaking. You release your grip on his wrist. He immediately gets up and makes a run for the door. You lean against the desk behind you with a smile as you wait. He rips the door open and smashes his face into Bane’s chest making him bounce backwards falling onto his ass. “You’re looking a little pale Mr. Daggett. Like a rat caught in a trap.” Bane says humorously as he looks down at the scared little man. Then he looks to you with his eyes crinkled at the corners, smiling at you underneath the mask. “He did exactly what you said he would my love.”

Bane walks into the room with Barsad and they shut the door. You’re still laughing as you walk across the room. “Yes my love, he is a predictable little weasel.” Barsad hands you a gun with a wide smile on his face. “Here you go my friend.”

You take the gun and stand over your father with your foot on his chest. He starts stuttering. “You...you said you wouldn’t kill me.”

“This won’t kill you. Now start begging.”

“I’m...I’m so so sorry. I was a terrible father. I’ll do...do better. Let’s start over. Have some compassion, we’re family, we’re blood. I apologize for everything.”

You look at Bane and Barsad. All three of you have serious faces until you can’t hold it anymore and laugh almost hysterically. Including Bane. You wipe your eyes with one hand and take a deep breath to calm down. “Oh that was pathetic thank you. You even made Bane laugh.”

“So…are you...will you let me go?” Your father says as he looks around at all three of you with hope in his eyes. 

You scoff at him. “Fuck no.” Then you pull the trigger on the gun. He screams like a banshee when the tranquilizer dart pierces his skin on his stomach. “Sorry forgot to warn you, it hurts just a tad. But don’t worry, it's just a tranquilizer. You’re going to take a little nap.”

Bane wraps his arm around you as Barsad high fives you. “Well done my love. I quite enjoyed listening to you toy with him.” Barsad points at Bane and gives him a look. “I had to stop him from barging in here when your father started calling you names.”

You put your hands on your hips and lift an eyebrow at your husband. “You would have spoiled all my fun. Now can we move him to his next destination before the tranqs start to wear off please?”

After the altercation with Talia it took you sometime to get over what happened. Bane had mixed feelings. He was saddened the young child he once protected like she was his own was gone, but he realized that girl had been gone for a long time. Then on the other hand he was also relieved to not have to worry about her coming after you anymore. 

A few months later, after Eddie was finished with his internship he came to Nanda Parbat like he said he would. He stayed for the summer. Him and Barsad were witnesses for the private ceremony when you and Bane were married. A man from the village tucked away below Nanda Parbat performed the ceremony. 

After that you embraced the training Barsad had given you and stopped being afraid and put it to use. You befriended the league members and actually took the time to get to know them. The next time Bane took a job from Joker you did slap him across his painted clown face for making lewd comments at you. Your husband enjoyed every second of it. You’ve been happily married for almost two years now.

You decided to seek revenge on your father once and for all when you discovered he weaseled out of his prison sentence. You wanted to show him you weren’t weak and scared anymore. While also giving him the punishment he deserves. 

Standing in the hot sun you peel off another layer of clothing. You see Bane watching the sweat drip down between your cleavage. You bite your bottom lip to hold back a smirk. When he sees you’ve caught him staring at you lustfully he shrugs his shoulders. “You’re going to have to hold that thought handsome. Gotta finish this first. Then you can ravish me.” He nods his head at you once with a raised brow and you can tell he’s smiling under his mask. 

Bane and Barsad drag your father into his new home and drop him on the hard ground with a thud. Barsad frowns with his hands on his hips. “Maybe you shouldn’t have shot him a third time. He’s still out cold.”

“Well he looked like he was waking up. I didn’t want to listen to him bitch and whine the rest of the flight.” You try defending your actions. Although you were also having fun shooting him with the painful tranquilizer darts. You sigh and kick at your father a couple times. When he still doesn’t wake up you curse under your breath as you kneel down. Then you slap him across the face a couple times. The third slap you put some extra strength into it. His eyes fly open and he gasps a couple times. You jump back to your feet feeling victorious. “Rise and shine old man.”

He rubs his eyes and sits up trying to orient himself. “Where...where am I?”

You smile at him devilishly once again. “Well Bane and Barsad once called this place home a very long time ago. They like to call it the Pit of Despair. It’s hell on earth, welcome to your new home and final resting place.” 

His eyes go wide and he tries jumping to his feet but he falls over still feeling groggy from all the tranquilizers you shot him with. “What?! You can’t do this! People will notice I am missing, they’ll question Eddie for it. You really want your brother mixed up in a witness protection missing persons case?”

You let out an annoyed sigh and kick some dirt up into his face. “Really? It’s like fucking clock work with you. Always straight to Eddie. Like I said already, he is very off limits. To everyone. Will people notice you’re missing? Sure, probably. Will they care? No, not really.” Then you lean down with your hands on your knees. “I know you’re already thinking of a way to beg your way out of here when we leave. So I’m going to burst that bubble for you right now. Bane owns this prison now. We have paid your torturers handsomely. No one is going to help you.”

As you walk away from his cell with your husband and friend you hear your father’s pleas, begging you to come back. Which just brings you more joy. 

When you get back above ground outside the prison Bane pulls you flush against him. He still has that lustful look in his eyes. You smile at him as you run your hand up his chest. “You do always get all hot and bothered when I torment someone. Is it weird that I like that?”

“Just means we were truly meant for each other, my love. Now I do believe you promised me some ravishing.” 

The hot sun makes his skin glisten. You lean up and kiss his sweaty neck. “I guess this little trip did interrupt our baby making. We better go make up for lost time then shouldn’t we?” 

He lets out a growl picking you up and throwing you over his shoulder. You laugh and think how much you love this man and can’t imagine yourself without him

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm still loving me some Tom Hardy so I'm getting ready to start my first Peaky Blinders fic. Alfie Solomons and Thomas Shelby sound good to anyone?


End file.
